MPs and trade body voice health concerns after study shows first decline in vaping

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MPs and an industry association have voiced concerns about the first decline in vaping and its possible impact on public health.

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It follows the recent publication of a study by Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) which showed that for the first time, e-cigarette use had declined year-on-year, from 7.1% to 6.3% of the adult population in Great Britain.

This amounted to 3.2 million people still vaping in the period to February/March 2020 compared with some 6.9 million smokers.

Gareth Johnson MP, a member of the all-party parliamentary group for vaping, said: “Vaping is significantly safer than smoking and false information to the contrary is literally costing lives.

“If smokers switch to vaping there is clear scientific evidence that it is better for their health so we need more encouragement of smokers to make this change.”

Another member of the parliamentary group, Scott Mann MP, said: “For many years now the harm-reduction impact of vaping in the UK has been a key asset in efforts to improve public health.

“To see the number vapers fall for the first time, when millions of people continue to smoke across the country, is a cause for concern.

“The public must be empowered to understand and access less harmful alternatives, not be pushed away.”

John Dunne, director general of the UK Vaping Trading Association, the largest trade body representing the sector, said: “Misinformation continues to be a huge challenge for the industry despite its efforts to make consumers aware of the evidence-based facts, including the Public Health England (PHE) statement that vaping is at least 95% less harmful than smoking.

“Inaccurate and misleading reporting, together with highly questionable research, gives a negative view of vaping to smokers who may otherwise quit. Even worse, it could make current vapers reconsider whether they’ve made the right move by taking up e-cigarettes.

“Earlier this year, PHE concluded that perceptions of harm from vaping among smokers are increasingly out of line with the evidence, with the misperceptions particularly common among smokers who do not vape.

“There are still 3.2m vapers out there who have made the successful switch but there are also 6.9m smokers. These smokers can still turn to vaping to quit cigarettes and benefit from harm reduction.”

The Ash study shows that some 33%, of smokers have not yet tried e-cigs with 21% of them saying they do not want to substitute “one addiction for another”.

There has also been an increase in those citing safety concerns as their main reason for not trying e-cigs, 8% say they do not know enough about them while 9% say they do not believe they can help them quit or cut down.