John Dunne advises ECCC on UK laws and the best practice to prepare for any future new regulations amid youth access and environmental concerns.
As the UK government seeks wide-ranging new powers to regulate the vape industry, UK Vaping Industry Association Director General John Dunne was in China to brief some of the world’s leading vape companies on the regulatory landscape.
John was invited to Shenzhen, the vaping capital of the world to provide compliance training on the UK’s vaping market to members of the ECCC, one of the four founding members of the Global Vape Alliance.
Disposable devices will be banned throughout the UK from April next year, and the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which is currently working its way through parliament, seeks to give ministers unprecedented powers to ban flavours and decide how vapes are packaged and sold.
John told more than 200 entrepreneurs and representatives from the Chinese ECCC membership that vaping was under the spotlight in the UK like never before, with the government demanding action to clamp down on youth sales and environmental issues.
Speaking at the headquarters of the Electronic Cigarette Industry Committee of the China Electronics Chamber of Commerce (ECCC), he shared his expert knowledge to conduct on-site compliance training to some of the world’s leading vape companies including ELFBAR, SKE, ELUX, HQD, HANGSEN, GREENSOUND, ASPIRE, ICCPP, RELX, ALD, UWELL and ZINWI.
At the meeting Dunne gave a comprehensive analysis of the latest situation in the UK’s vaping market, focusing on issues such as disposable ban, potential flavour ban and the effects of e-liquid tax increases.
Describing the regulatory landscape in the UK as ‘complex and changeable’ John said issues such as the protection of minors, battery recycling and environmental protection were high on the agenda of politicians, regulators and the general public.
He told the ECCC: “It is absolutely vital that all companies operating in the UK are fully-compliant with all local laws and work at all times to show the industry in the best possible light.
“The vape industry has done so much to help adult smokers quit and there remains much more to be done so we must all work together to establish a good international image for the whole sector.”
After the meeting, it was agreed that heads of leading ECCC member companies including ELFBAR, SKE, ELUX, and HQD would take the lead in working with the trade body to implement various tasks surrounding the protection of minors, compliance operations and environmental protection in order to promote a good development ecosystem for the global vaping industry.
John said that the UKVIA would continue to work with the ECCC to help members comply with current compliance requirements, prepare for future regulatory change and to foster global cooperation to promote the development and prosperity of the global vaping industry.