Health Minister Stephen Donnelly has vowed to crack down on the design and flavour of vapes as he announced a ban on the sale of e-cigarettes for under-18s.
The Fianna Fáil TD said that the EU is currently examining new legislation on e-cigarettes but if it does not go far enough, Ireland will push forward with its own rules.
Cabinet approved a bill from the Minister that will prohibit the sale of nicotine-inhaling products to anyone under 18 years.
READ MORE: Irish Government planning to ban vapes being sold to teens within months
It will also prohibit the sale of tobacco and nicotine-inhaling products at events for children and ban vape vending machines.
Ads for vapes will be banned on public transport and around schools, with a strict new licensing system introduced for the products.
Minister Donnelly said that while Ireland is not looking at an “outright ban” on vapes, he does want to see restrictions on flavours, labelling, designs and advertising in shops.
He explained: “We're engaging with the EU on the updated Tobacco Products Directive. “This is a directive we anticipate will be published next year.
“We're keen to see restrictions brought in on labelling. We're keen to see restrictions brought in on flavours.
“We're pursuing that through the EU approach. That directive is still being worked up and we'll see how it's published.
“Our preference is to do this on an EU-wide basis coming in next year.
“If it looks like that's not going to happen at an EU level or if it's going to be delayed or watered down at an EU level, we will look to amend the legislation and bring it in here in Ireland.
“We're going to be supporting moves to restrict labelling, as was done previously and successfully in terms of tobacco products.”
Minister Donnelly told the Irish Mirror that he believes that the flavours and designs for vapes are “child-friendly”.
He continued: “Rather than getting into specifics of what they might look like, I think from a policy perspective, we need something that does not look like it's trying to be attractive to children and young people.”
Minister Donnelly said that vaping can impair teenagers’ cognitive development. He also said that there is evidence that showed that vaping can lead to smoking.
Minister of State for Drugs Hildegarde Naughton also confirmed that retailers who are found to have sold vapes to teens will face fines up to €4,000 or up to six months in jail. For subsequent offences, there is a fine of up to €5,000 or 12 months in prison.
Retailers will also have to obtain a licence to be allowed to sell vapes in their stores.
Elsewhere, Minister Donnelly said that he was disappointed by figures in the Census that showed the level of smoking amongst people in their 20s and 30s increased during the pandemic.
Nearly a quarter of both daily (23%) and occasional (22%) smokers were aged between 35 and 44.
Just under a quarter (24%) of people aged 25 to 29 years smoked either daily or occasionally.
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