Nicotine regulation: UK future

[Kate]

Hopefully it won't come to that Ruby. Have a look at the proposals from the Royal College of Physicians that TBob has linked. As Leaford says they are aware that damage reduction is important for smokers and aren't (yet) proposing a ban on nicotine for non-medical use. Hopefully they will view esmoking favourably when it comes to their attention.

[Kate]

I hope for sensible regulation Brenda, I think there are hazards with nicotine that should be minimised. What the powers that be think is sensible is anybody's guess though and I worry that you may be right. Nicotine has bad connections and is likely to suffer a bit of a knee jerk reaction from some official quarters.

[brendajorsler]

I wish that I had the same faith Kate. I just simply do not trust the powers that be.
The Royal College of Physicians are in bed with the large Pharm. company's and many of the Physicians have a vested interest in the Pharm. company's by way of directorships etc. It will not be in their interests to allow people to buy nicotine privately to e-smoke as there will not be as many products required to help smokers quit. ie. Less profits.
If all cigarette smokers changed to e-smoking then the treasury would lose a fortune. Therefore the Government must either decide to ban e-cig nicotine and keep the Pharm. and tobacco company's happy. Or to regulate and tax it's supply to keep the taxpayer and themselves happy and upset the Pharm and tobacco industries.
They are caught between a 'rock and a hard place'
It's good that the Government are squirming on the e-cig issue, but I expect that in the end they will find a way to stop us using an untaxed and unregulated form of nicotine.
One example of our leaders stealth was to publish the fact that cigarettes brought from outside the EEC contained dangerous levels of chemicals not present in EEC ciggies. Perhaps it was because they were a lot cheaper !!!
Forever the cynic
Brenda

[Ruby]

I think the way we will go eventually is going to be much in the genre of the way snus was banned , but I am a pessimist by nature.

I agree so much with you Kate that we just don't know the dangers of e-smoking yet - we only know it has to be safer than cigarettes. And we do need to know.
But losing profits can quickly create a bias. And bias can twist facts with ease.
Independant studies (if we'd be lucky enough to get them which I very much doubt) I would trust. But government related studies I would distrust every time due to heavily vested interests allround.

[MagusSteele]

Damage reduction? WTH does that mean really?
Its Political speak
Meaningless
Its in there to show "We Care, about Your Plight" They are Compasionate of others, see how much we care, we can send them pamphlets and educate the masses on the new Utopia that Can Be yours, if only you quit ALL nicotine products NOW.
BTW, we need to tax it 300% and we will need government grants of a billion to do all this, oh and we need to raise the income and sales tax as well, for rehabilitation centers and re-education centers for the unwashed masses.

It is A Government report, full of half truths, BS, outright lies, misinturperated data for their own needs, and anything they want it to mean. If they are cought in a lie, they just make up something new, and see if its believed.
"It is for the Public good" "It will save on Health care" "It will save the children"
All meaning less

[MagusSteele]

Now that i think of it, I could probably post a dozen studies that say second hand smoke is completly harmless, or less harmful, then the average city air on any given day.
and CERTAINLY better then the air at this years Olympics

So, having an independant study, Can, also be useless.
"You Can't Fight City Hall"

[smoking gnu]

I cant believe that they have overlooked this for so long. I also think it will be regulated and taxed. The best chance we have is it will be pharmacy controlled and sold as a quit smoking product. I think some EU countries are all ready doing this. I think it says on the sedansa site that this is the case in Austria. Although I would not be surprised if big tobacco try to get some of the action. It would be nice just to go to the supermarket to pickup some carts. But I wont be holding my breath for that, as the joy police still might get it banned. But if it can be proved to be much better than smoking then we have some hope. Just my opinion.

[Ruby]

Mmmmm....just look at the WHO's outrage and the other posts about e-cigs today.
How long till the UK jumps on it as big news and our goverment starts their killjoy ?
I'm hoping the suppliers will start to think very creatively and that they'll fight any new developments that threaten their business. Going to have to get smart fast.

[Kate]

The Department of Health 'Consultation on the future of tobacco control' can be viewed here - http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publications...&Rendition=Web

Among other things it says:

...
The health impacts of smoking are also largely unrelated to nicotine. People smoke to get nicotine but they die from emissions from smoking tobacco, particularly the tar and carbon monoxide. It may therefore be possible to find new ways to reduce the risk to smokers who are unwilling or unable to break their addiction to nicotine.
...
If manufacturers claim that their product will help people to quit smoking, their product will be considered a medicine and therefore they must apply for a licence from the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA). However, if no such claims are made explicitly in the packaging or marketing, these products remain largely unregulated.
...
Medicinal nicotine and the alternative nicotine products currently on the market are known to deliver nicotine more slowly than cigarettes. There is considerable scope for developing faster‑delivery nicotine products, research into which would be encouraged by the Government. For those who have made repeated unsuccessful quit attempts, making such products more affordable and easily available may present a solution.
...
More recently, electronic ‘cigarettes’ have begun to appear on the market across Europe. While resembling cigarettes, most of these products do not appear to contain tobacco, simply providing a dose of nicotine, which is inhaled as water vapour. Because most e-cigarettes do not make health claims, they currently are not required to be sold under any form of licence.

[Ruby]

That's great - thanks for posting it Kate.

It's a nice one for our sellers too. I just read another thread on here that had trading standards trying to muscle around with some of the sellers - maybe keeping this on them would chill the trading standards people out a little.

It looks positive.