What harm reduction in selling vapes to non-smokers, KJ asks

There is no harm reduction in allowing the sale of vapes and electronic cigarettes to those born after 2007 in the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill 2022, said Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin.

On the contrary, that would amount to allowing the initiation of smoking for those who have never smoked before, he said.

“Harm reduction is for those who already smoke, so why do we want to allow initiation for non-smokers?

“We do allow (the sale of vape and electronic cigarettes) in the bill for those born before 2007. But for people born after 2007, why even give them the option of smoking anything?

“There’s no harm reduction there because they are not supposed to be smoking. We are cutting off initiation,” Khairy said to reporters after attending an event to hand over allocation to mental health NGOs at the Health Ministry in Putrajaya today.

A section of the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill 2022, widely known as the Generational End Game (GEG) - seeks to make it unlawful to sell tobacco products and smoking devices to those born from Jan 1, 2007, onwards, with the ban starting in 2025.

The bill was initially meant to be voted on in the previous Dewan Rakyat sitting but that was postponed to send the bill to a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) for fine-tuning first.

The PSC was tasked with making recommendations related to enforcement and penalties under the bill as well as examining the suggestions raised by MPs during the policy debates for the bill, among others.

The bill is expected to be tabled for voting in the upcoming parliamentary sitting.

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