Jennifer Murnane O'Connor
Carlow-Kilkenny · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“There is nothing any of us in this House can say that can undo the pain, harm and loss experienced by those young boys, their families and the communities in which they lived, played basketball and worked. They have had to endure a lifetime of harm, many of them carrying their suffering in silence.”
“We are listening to you, we are learning and we are acting. All of us in this House have a responsibility to ensure that our child safeguarding systems are robust. We must ensure that if concerns are raised today, they are acted on without delay.”
“Today is a profoundly important and solemn day. I want to add my voice to the full and formal State apology and to acknowledge the courage, dignity and perseverance of those survivors who fought for truth and accountability for so many years.”
“I thank the Deputy for highlighting this very important issue and the 161 recommendations. First, I thank the Joint Committee on Drug Use for its work. I welcomed the report and I am in agreement with many of its recommendations. As the Deputy will be aware, earlier this year I published a draft of the national drugs strategy.”
“The Bill and the secondary legislation, training and clinical protocols that will follow it will support the terms and conditions for this service, as laid out in the community pharmacy agreement. All secondary legislation will be in place before commencement and launch of this measure.”
“No. I thank the Deputy again for her work on the drugs committee. The vast majority of the 161 recommendations will be in the new drugs strategy but one of the recommendations was on the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977. It falls under section 3. That legalises drugs. It is important we tell the people of the concern.”
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“I compliment my colleague and everybody involved because I know a lot of work has gone into this Bill. I know the commitment and dedication that there has been. I spoke to the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, several times about dual diagnosis, which I feel is really important and this is going to be addressed in this Bill. To everybody involved, as other TDs have said, this is groundbreaking legislation. Having known the Minister of State for so long, I know her commitment and dedication to getting this Bill through. This involves everybody who needs the services. This is about them today. This is about the people who need the services that are there for them, and this is what we are focused on today. Well done to all involved.”
“This Bill prioritises the protection of children and young people from these harmful and addictive substances. I know it is an issue that all public representatives are concerned about and I hope Senators will work with us on these issues. This is about protecting health and well-being, particularly for our children. I thank everyone for raising the really relevant issues and concerns they have today. As I said, I will be in again with our second Bill. It is important that we all work together. This legislation is vital. I know there are challenges, as other speakers have said, but this is about our young people and what we need to do to move as quickly as possible.”
“That is why both I and the Minister for Health have consistently called for a revision of the tobacco products directive as soon as possible. However, we cannot afford to wait for EU actions. We have a responsibility to act where we can to protect the health of our children and young people. That is what this law and this next Bill I will bring to the House aims to do. This legislation is about prevention. By banning single-use vapes, we are taking further action to protect our young people from nicotine addiction and to prevent a new generation from becoming dependent on these products. Single-use vapes are designed to be cheap, attractive and easy to use. This is a contribution to the normalisation of nicotine use and it seems to have become normalised now. It is not good for our environment and public health either.”
“Our national tobacco control policy, Tobacco Free Ireland, is currently being reviewed and one of the central goals is to set out a pathway to end the epidemic of smoking-related harm in Ireland. All measures to fulfil these objectives will be considered, including a general ban, which is the smoke-free generation. That is another thing. We are all working on the quit smoking campaign. Our objectives are clear. We want to put in place a law that is effective, proportionate, firm and focuses on protecting public health and the environment. Ireland is acting and doing its best in how we act decisively. In doing so, we are moving ahead of many of our European counterparts. An EU-wide approach would significantly strengthen the impact of our national action and ensure member states are supported in their efforts.”
“It is hoped that this campaign will also contribute to the continuing decline in tobacco use among young people, given the association between vaping and subsequent smoking in adolescents. There is another area that comes up all the time; I am raising it in the last few minutes here. We are talking about what is called a smoke-free generation. In November 2024, the Public Health (Tobacco) (Amendment) Act 2024 - Senator Paul Daly spoke about this - was enacted. Under this law, Ireland became the first country in the EU to raise its minimum legal age for sale of tobacco products to 21. The measures will come into effect on 1 February 2028. We are really making good strides and we need to do more.”
“We have to be mindful of that and of how we get the prevention campaign out there. The second phase of the campaign is aimed at children and young people. It was launched in March of this year. We got influencers and a content creator to reach young people through social media. Again, we had to very much focus on social media and I believe it is the first time the HSE had influencers doing this. I thought it was really important to target our young people on this. As part of the campaign, a letter was sent to schools encouraging teachers and parents to learn more about vaping and to download the resources from the HSE. Since then, over 8,000 leaflets have been sent out.”
“It is important because a lot of money has been invested in the prevention campaign for vaping. Some €300,000 was allocated in budget 2025 to develop and run a youth vaping prevention media campaign and €200,000 was given in budget 2026 to continue this campaign. The first thing that has to be said is that you cannot sell vapes to under-18s. You are breaking the law. You cannot do that. It is illegal to sell vapes to under-18s; you cannot do it. This campaign provides evidence-based messaging to young people, as well as information and support to parents and guardians about vapes. The first phase of the campaign, aimed at parents and guardians, was launched in 2025. This included digital advertising and radio campaigns. We are very mindful that we are living in an era where for young people, a lot of things are digital.”
“That is vaping and smoking in public which has constantly come up. The legislation programme pursued included the measures most likely to reduce vaping among young people. However our national tobacco control policy, tobacco-free Ireland, is currently being reviewed. Senator McDowell is right - working with our EU counterparts will play a huge role in this. The review will be considered in the full range of existing legislation and measures to protect the public from second-hand smoke and aerosols and whether these should be strengthened. We are looking at this in the context of the EU Council recommendation on smoke and aerosol-free environments, which recommends that member states protect the public from second-hand smoke and aerosols in a range of indoor and outdoor settings. This is just part of what is being looked at.”
“There will be compliance and prohibition notices, fixed-payment notices, a minimum licence suspension period following conviction and a revocation of licence after conviction if someone has two convictions. On resources, enforcement of tobacco and nicotine inhaling products legislation was highlighted as a priority action in 2026. The national service plan is part of this. Thirty additional WTEs have been allocated to the national environmental health service. It is recruiting these posts. They are expected we hope in mid-2026. On the proposals to extend the existing smoking-free legislation to vaping and prohibited smoking in outdoor areas, this has come across a lot of the time. It was subject to public consultation in 2024 alongside measures to regulate nicotine inhaling products.”
“We have two Bills on the advice of the Office of the Attorney General due to the regulatory framework for single-use vapes being different from that of the nicotine inhalant products. The issues he raised are very relevant. I assure him in the second Bill I will do what I can to work on that. There are many different opinions and many people feel to differently whether it is cigarettes and vapes. When the second Bill was in the Dáil last week, flavours were brought up on several occasions by Members. I thank him for raising it too. Enforcement is important. The Public Health (Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products) (Amendment) Bill 2026 introduces a range of new enforcement tools.”
“I thank all Senators for their contributions on this debate. I look forward to continuing engagement on the Bill on Committee Stage. Some Senators had to leave so I will come back to them on the issues raised. We are working with retailers and there will be notification. On single-use vapes from another country, this Bill applies to sales in the State. We cannot legislate for sales in other countries. Many other EU countries have banned them and an EU-wide law is coming in. I will meet any groups or organisations Senators would like us to meet. Senator McDowell spoke and I thank him. To clarify, there are two Bills. The Bill he spoke about is the second Bill, not the single-use vape Bill we are discussing tonight.”
“In addition, it provides that on conviction, the court can order the person convicted to pay the costs and expenses incurred in relation to the investigation, detection and prosecution of the offence. Section 18 provides that offences may be prosecuted up to 12 months after being committed. Section 19 provides for an offence of providing false or misleading information in purported compliance with this Act. Section 20 provides for a process of disclosure which includes protections against the sharing of information that is legally privileged. I commend this Bill to this House.”
“A person guilty of an offence under the Act is liable for a first offence to a fine of up to €4,000, or to imprisonment for a term of up to six months, or to both. For any subsequent offence a guilty person is liable to a fine of up to €5,000, or to imprisonment for a term of up to 12 months, or to both. Section 15 is a standard provision on defences for offences under the Act. Section 16 is a standard section that provides for the liability of officers of a corporate body in the case of an offence by that corporate body. Section 17 allows the national environmental health service of the HSE to bring proceedings for an offence under this Act.”
“A prohibition notice can direct a person that the contravention should cease immediately, require a single-use vape to be withdrawn or recalled from the market, or require that a single-use vape be disposed of or destroyed. The Bill provides for an appeal against a prohibition notice to the District Court within seven days. It also provides that if a prohibition notice has been served, but the contravention continues, the national environmental health service can apply for a High Court order to prohibit that continuation. Part 3 is on penalties and miscellaneous provisions. It covers sections 14 to 20, inclusive. Section 14 provides for penalties for first and subsequent offences under the Act.”
“Section 11 is a standard section that provides for the indemnification of the authorised officers. Section 12 provides for the powers of our environmental health officers to ensure compliance with the Act. This includes powers to enter a premises if there are reasonable grounds to believe that vapes will be found there or documents or other records relating to vapes; to inspect such premises and take copies of documents or records; to remove and detain any vape, or component of a vape, or any documents or records, where the officer has reasonable cause to suspect that there has been a contravention of this Act; and to require any person to provide relevant information, including for the purposes of ascertaining the ownership of websites. Section 13 provides for a prohibition notice in the case of contravention of section 9.”
“This gives our supermarkets, convenience stores, specialist shops and others that sell these products six months to make whatever business arrangements are necessary to comply with this prohibition. Section 8 is a standard section on expenses. Part 2 relates to the prohibition on single-use vapes and its enforcement and contains sections 9 to 13. Section 9 sets out the prohibition on the retail sale of single-use vapes in the State. It provides that it is an offence for any person to contravene it. Section 10 provides for the appointment of authorised officers for ensuring compliance with this Act. The Act will be enforced by our national environmental health service, which is the body that enforces the rest of our tobacco control and related law.”
“Section 2 is the definition section and sets out the category of products that will be prohibited from sale under this Bill. It provides that a vape must be both refillable and rechargeable, or be otherwise designed and intended to be reused, to avoid the ban. Section 3 ensures that the Bill will not apply to medical devices, accessories for a medical device or medical products. Section 4 is a standard section providing for the residence of a body corporate or unincorporated persons. Section 5 provides power for the Minister for Health to make regulations as needed. It also provides that any regulations must be laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas. Section 6 is a standard section providing for the service of documents. Section 7 provides for a six-month transition period from the commencement of the prohibition.”
“The Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, and I have committed that Ireland will do as much as it can to progress a revised directive if the proposal is published by the Commission during our EU Presidency. That would be really important for us. We are putting in place strong measures to reduce the appeal and availability of vapes and pouches to young people in Ireland and we hope there is more regulation to come at EU level. The Bill before Senators is the first of these measures. There has been widespread support for this legislation in the Dáil and I look forward to our discussion on it. I will take Senators through the Bill to outline the content of each section. Part 1 relates to preliminary and general matters and contains sections 1 to 8. Section 1 provides for the Short Title of the Bill and for the commencement of its sections.”
“We can all understand how a child might be attracted to vapes, with their colourful appearance, attractive flavours and flavour names and the variety on display in our ordinary grocery shops and newsagents. The new law will ensure that the visible presence of these products is reduced and it is made clear these products are not the same as ordinary groceries. While we are acting now to protect our young people, EU-wide law would be most effective. The legislation must keep pace with a rapidly changing market to protect children and go further to drive down smoking rates across the EU. On 2 April the EU Commission published an evaluation report on a tobacco control legislation framework, including the tobacco products directive. This paves the way for a formal proposal for a revised directive.”
“This Bill has created a new category of products called "nicotine consumption products". This category includes pouches and any other products for recreational consumption of nicotine other than tobacco, nicotine-inhaling products and medical products. Any new products for recreational consumption of nicotine will automatically fall under this provision. It is also important that our law is future-proof so that we are not caught off guard by the next product that comes around the corner. Future nicotine consumption products will be prohibited for sale to persons under the age of 18. In addition, the display of these products at the point of sale in our general stores will be prohibited and advertising of these products in store will be banned in all retail outlets.”
“The Bill will also ban the sale of devices resembling or functioning as other products such as toys or games. This is to ensure the Irish market does not progress into multi-use devices with features that would especially attract our young people. It will also restrict the flavours for sale and prohibit all flavour descriptors and language other than basic flavour names. This is to remove the marketing potential of the use of child-friendly flavour names. The point-of-sale display and advertising of these products in everyday supermarkets and convenience stores will also be prohibited in order that our children are not exposed to these products in their everyday lives. It will also make clear that these products are not the same as ordinary grocery goods.”
“This Bill removes the cheapest, easiest to use and most environmentally harmful vapes from the market. These products are disproportionately used by young people. We are following several EU member states such as France, Belgium and Bulgaria, which have banned these products. In June last year, a ban came into effect in Northern Ireland. This Bill will mean we have an all-island response to this issue. We are also bringing in a further law on nicotine-inhaling products and nicotine consumption products such as pouches. Last week, I introduced the Public Health (Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products) (Amendment) Bill 2026 to the Dáil. For nicotine-inhaling products, that Bill will restrict the colours and imagery on packaging and on the devices themselves to make them less eye-catching and appealing to our children.”
“All of us have seen the rise in vaping among our young children and young people in recent years, particularly since single-use vapes hit the market. Our Healthy Ireland survey tells us vaping among 15- to 24-year-olds went from 4% in 2021 to 20% two years later. E-cigarette use by people who had never smoked went from one in 25 in 2021 to one in six by 2024. Again, young people aged 15 to 24 are the group most likely to vape despite never having smoked. This is strong evidence that young people who vape are more likely to go on to smoke. There is a great concern that a big rise in vaping among young people could impact our efforts to drive down smoking, which continues to be the biggest prevalent cause of death, disease and disability in our country.”
“I am delighted to be here to introduce the Public Health (Single-Use Vapes) Bill to this House. This is the first of two Bills we are bringing forward on vaping. This Bill is a short one with a single purpose, which is to ban the sale of disposable electronic cigarettes or vapes. Like many people here, I regularly hear from parents, teachers and coaches who are concerned about the impact that vapes and nicotine use are having on children’s health. The sight of discarded vapes littering our towns and villages is also a huge problem as they are harmful to the environment. Ireland has a long and proud history of tackling the public health issues caused by tobacco, dating back to our world-famous indoor smoking ban. This Bill will continue that tradition.”
“The management of any organs must be in line with the wishes of the family. The human tissue Act 2024 includes a number of offences for which someone can be prosecuted for serious breaches of medical practice or records management. These are not intended to criminalise clinicians but a balance must be struck. A culture of patient safety and quality assurance, as well as open communication, must be at the heart of high-standard health services. It is important that we take all steps to prevent this ever happening again. As I said, I will meet with the Senator, and I will absolutely speak to the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, on her behalf.”
“Again, no words can ever make up for the distress experienced by affected families who have lost a loved one, particularly bereaved parents. The inappropriate retention of organs only added to the families' distress and grief. Dignity and respect for parents who have experienced the loss of a child is of paramount importance. This is why it is so important to commence the provisions of Part 3 of the human tissue Act which will establish a regulatory framework for the conduct of post-mortem examinations that embeds in law the idea that consent is the defining principle across activities involving human tissue. Under the Act, consent will be needed from families for arrangements relating to burial, cremation or the return of any organs retained from a post-mortem examination.”
“The Act also amends the Coroners Acts 1962-2024 to address issues with regard to material removed and retained from the deceased person in a post-mortem examination directed by a coroner. This is something that families directly impacted by recent controversies have called for, and it is important that the legislation has not only acknowledged these requests but has addressed them. I will be coming back in, but I think it would be important that the Senator would email me all that information, if she would not mind. I will also have a meeting with the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, on this matter.”
“The Human Tissue (Transplantation, Post-Mortem, Anatomical Examination and Public Display) Act 2024 was enacted in February 2024. Part 3 deals with pathology practice and implements many of the findings of the Madden report from 2005. This will establish a new regulatory regime to ensure best practice is followed in the conduct of post-mortem examinations. The Act introduces consent provisions for non-coronial post mortems and sets out a clear framework for how consent is to be obtained and the information that must be given to individuals or their families when seeking such consent. The Act also provides for the regulation of the retention, storage, use, disposal and return of organs and tissue from deceased persons following all post mortems in hospital settings, including those directed by a coroner.”
“A subsequent report of a working group, also chaired by Dr. Madden, on other areas of post-mortem practice and procedures was published in November 2006. An independent audit of all retained organs in the State, which was commissioned by the HSE, was carried out by Ms Michaela Willis and this report was published in 2009. The HSE subsequently developed its standards and recommended practices for post-mortem examination services and circulated these to relevant hospital staff in March 2012. The overall aim of the 2012 guidelines was to drive high quality post-mortem examination services, based on legal requirements and in keeping with best professional practice. These guidelines were recently updated to the HSE national clinical guidelines for post-mortem examination services in April 2023.”
“In hospital post-mortem services, this follows a detailed information and consent process with families. Consent processes underwent significant change and improvement following justified outrage, and that is factual, about post-mortem and organ retention practices in Ireland. Several inquiries have addressed the controversies around organ retention. The Dunne inquiry, as the Senator said, was established to investigate post-mortem practice and procedure in all hospitals in the State since 1970. The inquiry commenced its work in March 2001 and submitted a report to the then Minister for Health in March 2005. In May 2005, Dr. Deirdre Madden was appointed to examine the findings of the Dunne report and to provide the Government with a final report on post-mortem policy and practice. This report was published in 2006.”
“It is one of the most informative investigations in medicine and can provide objective information on the cause of death, which is of value to the family of the deceased, to healthcare professionals and to other interested parties. Post-mortem examinations can provide information about the risk of inherited diseases, which might be of benefit to family members in seeking necessary care and treatment. Post-mortem examinations can provide information to improve understanding of how disease is caused, advancing medical knowledge and helping others by contributing to the fight against disease and how it can best be treated. Organs or tissues are sometimes removed and retained as part of a post-mortem examination, primarily to allow for analysis of the cause of death.”
“I thank the Senator for highlighting this serious issue and concern. I know it is ten years ago, as the Senator said, but I also send my sympathies to Tadhg's parents. It does not matter how many years ago it was, it is still very emotional. I am taking this Commencement matter on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, because she cannot be here. I thank the Senator for raising this important issue. First, I express my deepest sympathies again to all those affected by the deeply troubling issues around organ retention. It is an unacceptable and very distressing situation for anyone to go through, especially after having experienced the tragedy of losing a beloved child. Most post-mortem examinations are a vital part of medical practice.”
“With this particular Bill, it should only take three months so we are hoping to have that back to us by July. The urgency of this Bill is today's. We want to get this Bill through the House as soon as possible. I believe everybody here wants the same and that this Bill is needed. I cannot say this enough; all of us working together will get the Bill through as soon as possible. This is about our young people and their future.”
“Ireland is leading the way on this. I know we need to do more. I know there will be amendments. I have listened to the concerns about looking at other flavours. This is about our young people and we feel tobacco and non-flavoured is the way to go. This is about saying, "Do not vape", and asking people not to vape. Vaping has been targeted so much at our young people and it has been a huge concern. I wrote down everyone's questions. I will get back to Members but if they want to email myself or the Department with any particular questions they have, we would be more than willing to answer them. I thank all of the Deputies. I am hoping to get this Bill through as soon as possible. We work with the EU and provisions are going through the EU as well so we are waiting on that. On disposable vapes, we are waiting for word on that in June.”
“I believe every Member wants this Bill to go through as quickly as possible. This Bill is about our young people but it is about when you are on a main street, for example, and you go into a shop, you see all of those colours, flavours and packaging, we are saying we are here to support you and work with you. Flavours are a concern but the unflavoured ones, other than tobacco, have worked in the Netherlands and it has legislated for this. It has really been successful. Ireland is really leading the way in this, too. We work extremely hard with our EU counterparts, which is important. That is an issue we are addressing for the European Presidency and to have a workshop or work with them on legislation to see what we can do. I do not know if that will happen. The Minister has also been very positive on this.”
“We felt this time it was really important. We needed to target our young people and for us to do that, we used the influencers. That was a really positive move. Social media is a part of our young people's lives now. Social media is out there and we know that. That is why we worked really hard on that. As part of the campaign, a letter was sent to schools encouraging teachers and parents to learn more about vaping and to download the resources from the HSE. Since then, over 8,000 leaflets have been sent out. We also made leaflets explaining what we were doing about vaping and nicotine. That was really positive. It is hoped that this campaign will also contribute to the continued decline in tobacco use among our young people, given the association between vaping and subsequent smoking in adolescents.”
“An allocation of €300,000 was provided in budget 2025 to develop and run a youth vaping prevention media campaign, which was really successful. We spoke to all of the different groups. We made sure we went to schools. We spoke to parents. We had loads of media coverage on it, which was important in making sure we were able to get that information out there. This year, another €200,000 was allocated to this budget. The campaign provides evidence-based messaging to young people and information and supports to parents and guardians concerned about vaping. The first phase was in 2025 and the second phase of the campaign is aimed at children and young people. It was launched in March and it was great. I launched it. For this campaign, we had influencers and content creators at the launch to reach young people through social media.”
“In 2026, as part of the HSE's national service plan, 30 additional whole-time equivalents have been allocated to the national environmental health service recruitment of these posts. They are expected in mid-2026. Enforcement came up a lot in the debate. It is important that we are able to enforce this as best we can within our health and well-being unit. We represent the health and well-being side. I am sure all Deputies are aware of the new licence fee coming out. This new licence fee will launch in the first weekend in August, I think. Anyone selling cigarettes or vapes will pay a licence fee. That means the HSE will have a list of who has licences, who does not and it will be easier for us to monitor this as well. That is another issue we really need to address. Another issue that was raised was the vaping prevention campaign.”
“They see this with kids in schools where they see them vaping. One TD brought up a story about someone who was going to a debs and they wanted to get a vape to match their dress. This has to stop. We have to make sure we are protecting our children and the future for them. I know other countries were talked about but the most relevant evidence for Ireland comes from the Netherlands. I was in the Netherlands recently and it put a ban on all flavours, except tobacco, which led to an overall decrease in both the vaping and the smoking and, seemingly, it is working really well. The other initiative I want to talk about is the resources. Enforcement of tobacco and nicotine inhaling products legislation was highlighted as a priority.”
“The pouches will be part of that. Toothpicks were brought up by a colleague along with snuffs. Anything with nicotine is included in this Bill. That is part of a really good initiative for anything new. We all know it is changing all of the time. From toothpicks to snuffs to pouches, it is constantly changing. In this Bill, that is what we are doing. Anything to do with nicotine is in this Bill. I cannot highlight this enough to anyone. If people are selling to anyone under 18, they are breaking the law. They cannot sell vapes to anyone under 18. I cannot say this enough. It is so important not to be selling them. I want to compliment the team accompanying me who have worked so hard. I know from speaking to schools and parents I have been talking to myself, this is a priority for them.”
“If I do not get through a lot of the questions, I will definitely come back with an answer for, or meet with, Deputies. I know they are saying we are forgetting about people who are smoking but we are continually increasing investment in State support to stop smoking, which includes free stop smoking medicine, such as nicotine replacement therapy, NRT, for anyone who wants to use them, more than doubling the number of clinics and expanding the We Can Quit peer-led programme. The HSE has now also recruited 48 new stop smoking advisers. We are trying to be very proactive in what we do. Another big issue that came up was pouches. Under the Bill, retailers cannot sell pouches to anyone under 18. The pouches will also be behind the shutters which can be pulled down, which is what we want to do. We want to make sure the vapes cannot be seen.”
“I thank everyone who spoke today in the Chamber. We can see the passion on this and the urgency of the Bill. A lot of issues were raised. I only have ten minutes. The issue of flavours was the big thing. As for why we are banning all flavours except tobacco, this is what is most likely to reduce the appeal to our younger people. Today is about children and young people. In balancing this protection of young people with the help for adults who smoke, which came up today, we have found that vaping is not being substituted for smoking at a population level in adults. Dual use of tobacco and e-cigarettes is no longer associated with an intention to quit smoking among adults and one in six adults who vape have never smoked. They have never smoked. There is no evidence that e-cigarette flavours increase the likelihood of quitting tobacco.”
“It is an additional amendment required along with that made at section 22 of this Bill to facilitate the test purchasing of nicotine consumption products. Section 29 amends the EU (Manufacture, Presentation and Sale of Tobacco and Related Products) Regulations 2016 to align the provisions in relation to the prohibition notice in that legislation with those in this Bill. I commend this Bill to the House.”
“Section 23 includes offences in relation to nicotine consumption products in information that may be published by the national environmental health service. Section 24 includes offences in this Bill in the section related to penalties. Section 25 includes nicotine consumption products in provisions in the 2023 Act regarding evidence in court proceedings. Section 26 amends section 39 of the 2023 Act to deem certain offences in this Bill as "category A" offences, which attract a longer duration of licence suspension and can lead to licence revocation. Section 27 inserts the Schedule on flavour names into the 2023 Act. Part 4 relates to miscellaneous amendments and contains sections 28 and 29 of the Bill. Section 28 amends the Public Health (Tobacco) (Amendment) Act 2024.”
“In addition, a nicotine inhaling product with a variant name that implies that it has a particular sensory characteristic or a flavour other than that described in the flavour name cannot be sold. Part 3B prohibits the point-of-sale display of nicotine consumption products. A retailer can provide a pictorial price list to the customer and display a sign saying that the products are for sale to persons over 18. The prohibition does not apply to shops that sell nicotine consumption products only or sell nicotine consumption products and-or additionally sell only nicotine inhaling products, vapes, vaping substances, or accessories related to the functioning or maintenance of nicotine inhaling products or vapes. Section 22 includes nicotine consumption products in the existing test purchasing provisions.”
“Part 3A also regulates the packaging of a nicotine inhaling product, including that it must be of a prescribed colour and not contain any imagery such as cartoons or graphics. Any outside covering of packaging and inner lining are also regulated under this Part. On flavours, a nicotine inhaling product cannot be sold with a flavour name other than those in the Schedule, which are "unflavoured" and "tobacco" flavour. Those are the two. The Minister for Health may add or remove flavour names to the Schedule, taking into account the impact of the measure and having regard to the objectives of reducing harm from tobacco products and nicotine inhaling products and prioritising the protection of health of our children.”
“Section 19 amends the definition of advertising in the 2023 Act to provide for the new advertising restrictions in this Bill. Section 20 prohibits the advertising of nicotine inhaling products and nicotine consumption products in retail premises or on a website that sells these products. Section 21 inserts new Parts 3A and 3B into the 2023 Act. Part 3A regulates the appearance of a nicotine inhaling product, including that it must be of a prescribed colour and shall not contain any imagery such as cartoons or graphics. It also provides that a nicotine inhaling product cannot function as a toy or any other product. Similar measures apply to a refill container for a nicotine inhaling product.”
“Section 16 adds nicotine consumption products to the existing standard provision to locate the jurisdiction of an offence. Section 17 inserts a new section 26A into the 2023 Act to prohibit the point-of-sale display of nicotine inhaling products. A retailer can provide a pictorial price list of the products for sale to a customer and display a sign indicating that the products are for sale to persons over 18, which would be the main thing. The prohibition does not apply to shops that sell nicotine inhaling products only or additionally sell only the following: nicotine consumption products, vapes, vaping substances, or accessories related to the functioning or maintenance of nicotine inhaling products or vapes. Section 18 makes it an offence to sell nicotine consumption products to a child.”
“Section 12 provides the national environmental health service with powers to act on tobacco products and nicotine inhaling products that are compliant with tobacco control law but are deemed to present a serious risk to health. It includes powers to seize and destroy products as well as remove online content in order to eliminate serious risk. This measure is provided for under the EU tobacco products directive. Section 13 amends section 56 of the 2002 Act to include the power to issue fixed payment notices for offences in the Bill. Part 3, on amendments to the Public Health (Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Act 2023, includes sections 14 to 27. Section 14 provides for the definitions in this Part. Section 15 updates the EU law references in relation to the exclusion of medical devices from this tobacco control law.”
“It also provides powers to ascertain details of the supply chain, market information and website ownership in order to align with the existing powers for tobacco and related products under the EU market surveillance regulations. Section 9 amends section 50 of the 2002 Act to include nicotine consumption products in the protocols for the taking of samples by authorised officers. Section 10 amends section 54 of the 2002 Act to allow the national environmental health service, the enforcement body under the Bill, to use compliance notices in relation to offences involving nicotine consumption products. Section 11 amends section 55 of the 2002 Act to allow the national environmental health service to issue prohibition notices in relation to offences involving nicotine consumption products.”