'We should go the full hog' - MEP calls for full ban on disposable vapes

Fianna Fáil MEP, Billy Kelleher has said that the Irish Government should follow the example of the French government, and other EU Member State governments, and completely ban the sale of disposable vapes.

“I am aware of, and welcome, the Minister for Health’s commitment to ban the sale of disposable vapes to under 18s. However, I think we, as a society, should be looking to go further,” said Kelleher, a former Fianna Fáil Health Spokesperson and current member of the European Parliament’s Public Health (SANT) Committee

“Disposable vapes are bad for the environment and bad for the wellbeing of an individual. Their lower price point, compared to longer use vapes, makes them enticing to teenagers and those aged over 18 with low incomes.

“The French Prime Minister in the past 24 hours has announced a range of anti-smoking measures, including a full ban on disposable vapes. France is joining a growing number of EU and non-EU countries, such as the UK, New Zealand, Australia and Germany, currently in the process of implementing a ban disposable vapes with

“From an environmental point of view, tens of thousands of these disposable, plastic items are being used and dumped every week. We don’t need them on sale. They don’t add anything, and so we should go the full hog, and move to fully ban them.

“I believe there is widespread public support for such a ban, and I hope that once the under 18 ban is enacted that the Minister for Health will move quickly to bring about the full ban,” concluded Kelleher.