Together with international co-signatories, the UKVIA has called again for the World Health Organisation reform its attitudes towards vaping with a statement in the City A.M.
World Health Organisation urged to reform vaping stance by industry
VAPING industry giants are urging the World Health Organisation (WHO) to reconsider its stance on e-cigarettes, amid fears that the international agency is encouraging states to ban vaping products.
Organisations from 16 countries across the globe are calling on the WHO to treat tobacco and vaping regulation separately, after its tobacco control group decided not to reform its views on vaping products
at a conference earlier this month.
Led by the UK’s Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA), signatories have said the WHO’s position is “not only at odds with countries who advocate smokers switching to vaping as part of their harm-reduction
strategies…but could also open the door to potential vaping bans worldwide. Some have argued that it
is also undermining progress in countries where e-cigarettes are used as an effective harm-reduction tool.”
Lizi Jenkins, a member of the UKVIA’s working group, said: “We and our international co-signatories
are extremely disappointed that the WHO tobacco control group is refusing to support harm reduction as part of its global smoking cessation strategy.