New rules on e-cigarettes and e-liquids

Cumbria Trading Standards are advising businesses who manufacture or sell e-cigarettes and e-liquids to be aware of new EU laws which come into force on Saturday 20 May. The use of e-cigarettes and e-liquids is becoming increasingly popular in the UK, with Vaping becoming recognised as a “safer” alternative to smoking. Specialist “Vaping Bars” are opening across Cumbria and a wide range of e- liquids are being offered for sale in many other retail outlets.

The new requirements include:

Minimum standards for the safety and quality of all e-cigarettes and refill containers (otherwise known as e-liquids)

Health information will be provided to consumers so that they can make informed choices

Items only to be sold in an environment that protects children from starting to use these products.

The new requirements also:

Restrict e-cigarette tanks to a capacity of no more than 2ml

Restrict the maximum volume of e-liquid for sale in one refill container to 10ml

Restrict e-liquids to a nicotine strength of no more than 20mg/ml

Require nicotine-containing products or their packaging to be child-resistant and tamper evident

Ban certain ingredients including colourings, caffeine and taurine

Include new labelling requirements and warnings

Require all e-cigarettes and e-liquids be notified to MHRA before they can be sold

Trading Standards Officers will be carrying out visits to premises across the county to advise, and to ensure they are following the new regulations.

These changes to the law apply to anyone who makes or sells e-cigarettes and e-liquids, including those who sell online via social media, auction sites or from their own website.

Anyone who does not comply could face imprisonment of up to two years and / or an unlimited fine.

Detailed guidance for sellers can be found at www.gov.uk/guidance/e-cigarettes-regulations-for-consumer-products

Consumers and healthcare professionals can report side effects and safety concerns with e-cigarettes or refill containers to the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) through the Yellow Card reporting system.

Cumbria Trading Standards manager John Greenbank said: “It is important that local businesses are aware of their responsibilities under the new legislation. We are committed to working with Cumbrian businesses to help them understand the new rules regarding e-cigarettes and e-liquids, and ensure they comply.”

Colin Cox, Cumbria County Council’s Director of Public Health said: “There is now strong evidence that vaping and e-cigarettes are considerably less harmful than smoking tobacco and that there is a strong case to be made for encouraging smokers who can’t or don’t want to quit to make the switch to vaping instead.

“The key messages I want to promote are if you don’t smoke, don’t start vaping; if you do smoke, stop altogether if you can "and our pharmacies can help; and if you can’t stop, or don’t want to" switch to vaping.

“Cumbria’s smoking rate is dropping and latest figures show that less than 16% of the adult population continue to smoke. However this still represents about 60,000 adult smokers across the county, so there’s a lot more to be done to help get the numbers down further.”

If you would like further advice please contact Trading Standards via the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 03454 04 05 06 or visit www.adviceguide.org.uk

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk

I prefer cigs with their real tobacco yumminess.

Smoking is a disgusting habit

E-cigs are a disgusting habit.

You should all give up like I did.

As i said in the other thread i gave up a 30 a day habit 17 years ago, the only help we had back then was either chewing anti smoking chewing-gum, wearing a nicotine patch or going cold turkey i did the latter and have not touched one since having said that i didn't give up the first time i tried and found it hard work i wish Vaping had been around then as i am sure it would have made giving up a lot easier.

Good for you chippy tea. ..that leaves you with loads of extra money to get hammered!
Soon only the NHS or medical outlets will be able to sell efags. ...it'll be like getting a prescription or glasses only a qualified efagnician or vapedoctor will be able to dish it out ....at 10 times the cost!

Gunge said:

I prefer cigs with their real tobacco yumminess.

Click to expand...

We all know what you mean :thumb:

...terrym with his 30% abv coal tar point of ayr colliery Volga delta kalashnikof stout.....
With fag stump dry hop.....

Good for you chippy tea. ..that leaves you with loads of extra money to get hammered!

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I wish that was the case, i think most people find when they give up suddenly they can afford things they couldn't before and the money soon goes.

Clint said:

...terrym with his 30% abv coal tar point of ayr colliery Volga delta kalashnikof stout.....
With fag stump dry hop.....

Click to expand...

Nowt wrong with a bit of tar. :thumb:
If it's coal tar, it contains tar bases including pyridine (which attacks the Central Nervous System), tar acids (phenols, cresols etc), high boiling coal tar or pitch which was used to bind material for the roads before oil based bitumen took over, creosote (which is now banned except for industrial users), ammonia, benzene which is carcinogenic, and many other chemicals. Good stuff eh? I'm sure tobacco tar is just as good. Yum yum

Ale said:

Smoking is a disgusting habit

E-cigs are a disgusting habit.

You should all give up like I did.

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I've got more than one disgusting habit which folk are constantly, tediously telling me to give up. I can think of some that they have but I don't tell them to give up; it's their life to do as they see fit. As for smoking being a waste of money, nah I enjoy it and don't mind paying for it. I can't understand folk who pay to watch football, for instance. But there y'go Funny ol' world innit?

I can't understand folk who pay to watch football, for instance.

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I was adamant i would give up when i wanted to and that decision would not be made because people badgered me about giving up, that decision was brought forward by several years when my mate who was not much older than me died of throat cancer leaving a wife and 19 year old son behind, i would never tell anyone to quit but hope you manage to kick the habit one day.

.

Chippy_Tea said:

i would never tell anyone to quit but hope you manage to kick the habit one day.

.

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Unlikely, I ain't even trying! I've had a couple of mates die in motorbike crashes but no matter how much I warn others of the possible consequences of riding the damn things, they refuse to stop. Hold on... I'm just as bad as them and need a fag to settle the shakes after yet another too-close encounter with the reaper! Ah I know you all mean well and I do appreciate it to a point, but I ain't a quitter lol.

Must be the last gasp EC initiative on a new money making fad. Great if it helps folk kick the habit. But I heard that you can get the vapes 'loaded' with a brew of your choice ,,,,

Strange seeing Trading Standards hyping this,,,, I qualified with John Greenbank 20+ years ago in a different life before I crossed over,,, :twisted:

This annoys me so much. Not the stop smoking or stop hurting your body etc..
But the bad vibes about vaping, the fumes given off by vaping are no worse than any particles in the air already there.

So why the restrictions????????

The amount of filling a tank makes no difference, selling in 10ml bottles and having tanks of 2ml or less has no effect other than a user refilling more often.

I gave up smoking 4 years ago and vape like it`s a lifeline. I am definately addicted to nicotine and get very angry if denied, was a surprise to me I fully admit.

What I can`t understand is the limits to quantities. I use 6mg nic/3ml per day and think a bigger tank makes life easier - don`t have to refill more than once a day but I will have to.

Someone in the industry via ebay (ie. vague info) told me it`s the cigarette industry making the new rules so they can take over the vaping industry. I think this is so, we will see.

A point no one seems to ever bring up is the fact that the e-cig makers (probably) have no idea what the long term consequences of e-cig use are and the e-cig users are basically being guinea pigs.
I quit smoking quite a long time ago and it cost me more after quitting: a couple of months after quitting my taste buds recovered and I was able to tell just how awful Little Debbie snack cakes actually tasted and had to start buying Hostess.

E-cigs may be a ticking time bomb but surely using them is better than inhaling all the chemicals that are in normal cigarettes and if you use e-cigs as a means to get off the real thing they have got to be a good thing when compared to the alternatives.

I've just opened a pack of Golden Virginia and there's no smell on earth comes close to such exquisiteness - not even a pack of super-fresh (insert your favourite here) hops. Whaddya get with e-liquids? Ye that's right - some factory concocted cack with names that appeal to five-year olds and which is probably just as laden with unnecessary chemicals to aid addiction as modern cigarettes are. Definitely gonna grow my own again and this time around I WILL get it right.

I'm pretty sure if you look round the intrewebz you will easily come across a homebreweliquid forum, if the EU dictatorship was so concerned about how much of anything you could buy and health issues arising from it they would just ban the original problem causing product in the first place, ah but hold on, where would they get there directorship/board jobs from when they give up politics if they where seen to be actually acting for the good of the people instead of the good of there bank balance.

e-cigs with their daft flavours and nursery-rhyme names - the tobacco world's equivalent of alcopops to alcohol's. Alcohol for people who don't actually like the taste of alcohol. Nicotine for people who don't actually like the taste of nicotine.Tastes like cherry cola or raspberry or vanilla but it'll still **** you up just nicer to take. Don't get me started on quorn, that stuff is vile and only good for growing mushrooms on. Er, hold on....