Disposable vapes like Elf bars should be BAN in Britain, claims ex health minister
Disposable vapes like Elf bars should be BAN in Britain, claims ex health minister
- Conservative former health minister Dr Caroline Johnson called for a ban on vaping
- She said e-cigarettes contain ‘known carcinogens’ and ‘18% of children are users’
- It comes as the Mail discovered British children were selling the gadgets illegally
Disposable vapes should be banned immediately in Britain, a former health minister demanded today.
Dr. Caroline Johnson claimed that banning the sale of gadgets like the Elf Bar would prevent an “epidemic of teenage nicotine addiction.”
The Tory MP and pediatrician urged MPs to support her motion, arguing it would also help ‘protect our planet’.
Dr Johnson’s plea comes days after an investigation by the Mail found children are being illegally sold vapes containing up to 3,500 puffs of nicotine.
Chinese vaping giant Elf Bar admitted to ‘accidentally’ breaking the law after the audit found its products exceeded maximum levels.
Disposable vapes like Elf bars should be banned in Britain, an ex health minister claimed (file photo)
Conservative former health minister Dr Caroline Johnson (pictured) urged MPs to support her bill to ban single-use electronic cigarettes
In response, Tesco removed some of its gadgets – sold for just £5.99 – from stores.
The brand, which only launched in 2021, sells 2.5 million Elf Bars 600s in the UK every week, accounting for two out of three of all disposable vapes.
Other manufacturers of disposable vapes are JUUL and Vuse, which are also sold in supermarkets.
Dr. Johnson urged MPs to support her disposable electronic cigarettes (sales ban) bill.
Despite it being illegal to sell e-cigarettes to under-18s, one in ten high school students is now a regular user.
Official data shows that the prevalence among children has doubled in less than a decade.
Gadgets are often sold in trendy colors and with kid-friendly names and flavors, such as bubble gum and strawberry milkshake.
Although considered safer than smoking by top experts, their long-term effect on health remains a mystery and doctors fear a wave of lung disease and even cancer in the coming decades.
Vapes contain “known carcinogens” and have been linked to harm similar to that of smokers, Dr Johnson said.
“E-cigarettes are very new and some Members of this House may remember there was a time when cigarettes themselves were considered safe,” she added.
Dr. Johnson added that banning disposable vapes would also prevent the “vital” lithium batteries used to power them from ending up in landfills or polluting the environment.
The Sleaford and North Hykeham MP said: ‘By banning the sale of disposable vapes we are encouraging a more sustainable way of using e-cigarettes as a cessation aid and making vaping less accessible to children, preventing an epidemic of nicotine addiction in teenage age and protect our health. planet.’
NHS Digital, which last year surveyed nearly 10,000 students aged 11 to 15 about their smoking, drug and drinking habits, found that nine per cent are currently vaping – the highest recorded rate since the survey began in 2014
The prevalence of vapes – which can contain as much nicotine as 50 cigarettes – has doubled among children in less than a decade (Photo: Eleven Bars)
Dr Johnson’s bill will be considered again by MPs on Friday 24 March but will not pass the House of Commons without government backing.
It comes after it was revealed that the number of British children hospitalized by vaping has quadrupled in a year.
In 2022, about 32 cases were recorded of under-18s requiring medical treatment for e-cigarette-related conditions, up from just eight in the previous year.