Tuesday, 7 February 2023

 David LIMBRICK (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (14:33): In Australia the official statistic for COVID-19-related deaths since the beginning of the pandemic is approaching 20,000. This is roughly equivalent to the annual number of deaths attributed to smoking-related illness. For COVID we turned society upside down – there was no measure beyond contemplation for governments around the country – but for these smoking-related deaths our bizarre public health sector will not even support vaping as a less harmful option for nicotine delivery.

The Cochrane network is generally considered one of the best sources for high-quality evidence in healthcare policy. Their latest review on e-cigarettes found that there was high certainty that electronic cigarettes with nicotine increased quit rates compared with nicotine replacement therapy. The UK actively encourages smokers to try vaping through their public health institutions, as does New Zealand. In Australia, however, our public health lobby insist on continuing to demonise vaping and have muddied the water so much that people believe that smoking is a healthier option than vaping.

We have managed this policy area so poorly that the people who would likely benefit the most have poor access and we have a burgeoning black market that is supplying teenagers. A simple solution is to accept the inevitable and allow adults access to vaping products as a regulated consumer product. Then the issue of teen vaping can be addressed with full support from all sides.