... as a substitute for smoking it is preferable, something recognised in many other countries. Most health experts analysing e-cigarettes are of the view that they are 95 per cent less harmful than inhaling
tobacco smoke. UK officials believe the e-cigarette has assisted thousands of people to quit the smoking habit altogether. Fear that e-cigarettes may encourage young people to smoke has not been borne out by the European experience which suggests it is not "cool" to smoke them and serves as a reminder to young people of the difficulty of giving up the habit. Reluctance to introduce another smoking type product to the market is understood. But such reluctance needs to assess whether the new product is as bad as or worse than the current product. If so, it would be wise to seek to restrict it. But when the product is so overwhelmingly better it is difficult to understand the current rationale. It's a bit like refusing to legislate low-alcohol beer because we don't like the impact of alcohol in society. Most of us accept that no matter what your view on alcohol, low-alcohol beer is preferable to full strength. So it is and should be with e-cigarettes.
