For the record ...
HM Government
in reference to ...
Petition to: Quash the upcoming policy to ban electronic cigarettes. | Number10.gov.uk
The bolded text made me want to scream
HM Government
in reference to ...
Petition to: Quash the upcoming policy to ban electronic cigarettes. | Number10.gov.uk
E-cigarettes and other novel nicotine delivery products are subject to existing consumer product safety regulations as enforced by local councils trading standards departments. To comply, products must meet specific requirements concerning packaging and labelling of products which may be a danger to consumers. Some e-cigarettes have been tested by local authority trading standards departments and have failed to comply with consumer safety regulations. They have therefore been removed from sale.
Following advice from the Commission on Human Medicines, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agencys (MHRAs) independent scientific expert advisory committee, a decision was made to extend the use of licensed Nicotine Replacement Therapy products to include harm reduction. This means that the licence for these products has been extended to include those who are still smokers, but who choose or are forced not to smoke for a period of time. This would include when smokers do not wish to expose others to their secondhand smoke or cannot smoke because they are in a smoke-free area. It also includes those who wish to reduce the number of cigarettes smoked but do not plan to quit.
However, there are a number of products on the market, such as nicotine-containing e-cigarettes, topical gels and oral forms, that claim to contain nicotine and are widely and easily available but are not licensed medicines. Unlicensed nicotine-containing products have not been assessed for safety, quality and efficacy and therefore there is potentially a risk to public health.
The Government knows from work carried out by the Food and Drug Administration in the United States that laboratory analyses of e-cigarette samples were found to contain carcinogens and toxic chemicals. Bringing all current unlicensed nicotine containing products under regulation would protect users from unknown risks and ensure that smokers had products that had been assessed for their quality, efficacy and safety.
Until relatively recently, there were few or no nicotine products available, and how they were regulated was not a concern. However, the increasing availability of these products and their potential impact on public health means that regulation needs to be considered. Products that contain nicotine and which appreciably affect peoples metabolism in normal usage fall within medicines legislation in terms of pharmacological action. In light of this, on 1 February, the MHRA published a consultation exercise to seek views on the regulation of nicotine containing products, including e-cigarettes.
The consultation sought views on whether products containing nicotine should be considered to be medicinal products and, if so, whether all unlicensed nicotine-containing products should be removed from the market within 21 days, in line with current MHRA practice, or whether a notice should be issued to manufacturers that all marketing must cease by a certain date, such as June 2011, giving manufacturers a year to license their products as medicines.
The consultation did not seek to make nicotine-containing products available only to the pharmaceutical industry. All manufacturers of such products will be able to approach the MHRA to receive authorisation to sell their product. Rather, the consultation sought to set a level playing field that does not favour any particular manufacturer or industry.
The consultation was extended following the announcement of the general election and closed on 2 June. There were a large number of responses and these are now being considered. The outcome of the consultation will be announced in the autumn.
The bolded text made me want to scream
