Call to ban sale of vapes to U18s

Members of Cavan County are to write to the Minister for Health and the Garda Commissioner, Drew Harris, to seek clarity on the sale of vapes in retail outlets.

Cllr Brendan Fay (Ind) proposed a motion at the November meeting of the local authority asking the council to write to the Minister and the Commission on the issue. He wants to ask if all vendors have been informed of their responsibilities in relation to the sale of such products.

“There seems to be a total disregard for this law,” said Cllr Fay, asking for legislation to “totally ban disposable vapes”.

The motion received unanimous support from elected members in the council chamber. Under the Nicotine Inhaling Products Bill, there will be a complete ban on the sale, manufacture or import of single-use or disposable vapes in Ireland. There will also be a restriction on the sale of flavours, which may appeal to children, as well as a ban on point of sale advertising displays in shops. Colours and imagery on packaging and devices will also be restricted, while devices resembling or functioning as other products, such as toys or games, will also be banned.

Cllr Fay believes the products are being “made available” to U18s in shops across County Cavan. “This thing of vaping - we have shops in Cavan now that are making them available,” he told those gathered at the meeting.

“It’s in every town, not just ours, and there just seems to be no getting away from this. There are a lot of shops selling sweets and vapes, side by side, and this has been brought up at several meetings.

“Vendors are telling us that they have received no instructions from the Government or the Garda Commissioner on the matter. The regulations are not being enforced and it’s a disgrace that kids as young as 10 years’ old are now going in to get pizza and coming out with vapes because they are being sold everywhere.

“The law is there to say that they cannot be sold to U18s and I’d go as far as to say that we need the UK and countries across the EU to ban these vapes so that enforcement here can happen. I just want these shops to know that they are regulated when it comes to vapes and they are not allowed to sell them to kids.”

Cllr Stiofán Conaty added his support to the motion. “There is a place for vapes when they help smokers to quit - they helped me in fact to give up the cigarettes - but these disposable ones are an absolute scourge for young people and for health in general,” he said.

“The colours and flavours make them so enticing for young people. People who never smoked before are now vaping away. I really do think that the answer to this is to ban disposable vapes altogether.”

Cllr Carmel Brady (FG) told the meeting that she was part of the local Joint Policing Committee that worked very closely with Senator Diarmuid Wilson (FF) and Senator Michael Carrigy (FG) in relation to the sale of vapes to those U18s.

“The law came into force on December 22, 2023, and I challenged a local shop in my own town over selling vapes. In the beginning, the owners told me that they didn’t receive any word about the legislation; then they said they had received a notification.

“We, as members of the public, have to report it if we see vapes being sold to U18s because, at the end of the day, they are our children that they are selling them to. It has to be called out.”

Cllr Trevor Smith (FG) gave his view that vapes are a “gateway” to further addiction.

“Vapes have become very trendy among vulnerable teenagers despite all the harm that they are doing,” he said.

Supporting the motion, Cllr Clifford Kelly (FF) added: “Older people are buying them and passing them on to younger people and that’s not on. They are also vaping in the toilets in second-level schools as well and it’s a disaster so it is. Vapes are a health hazard. I was listening to a consultant on the radio recently and I learned so much about the number of young people who now have lung problems as a result of vapes. It’s unbelievable really.”

Cllr Áine Smith (FF) highlighted how everyone sees “these shops” popping up in towns - “ones that are selling American style sweets or candy and selling vapes as well”.

“That’s attracting younger people in and I really do think that this is going to bring with it a huge problem further down the line,” she continued.

“There will certainly be talk about popcorn lung and other conditions that we have never seen or heard of before. The smoking ban in Ireland was such a success when it was introduced 20 years ago and now we have vapes. It seems to have taken a completely wrong road because people are becoming addicted to them. The disposable vapes are also littering our environment and that is something that we don’t need.”

In conclusion, Cathaoirleach, Cllr T.P. O’Reilly (FG) added: “An outright ban is what’s needed. We are going to have to realise that they are bad for our health and people know this. It’s not like 50 years ago when people started smoking, they had no idea of the health implications further down the line. With vapes, we have access to information and know the risks.”