…it makes no sense at all to ban Vaping or to include vaping in bans on smoking in public places…Gerry Stimson Chair of the NNA December 2017

Time To Get Behind the Challenging Prohibition Campaign

The New Nicotine Alliance has begun a campaign opposing blanket vaping bans at work and in outdoor and indoor public spaces and they need your support.

Vaping is NOT covered by the current smoking bans meaning technically you can vape anywhere – however the NNA whilst pointing this out accept even they don’t want to see the use of e-cigarettes allowed everywhere!

The Challenging Prohibition Campaign launched last week and the advocacy charity is calling on vapers to get behind it in various ways including tweeting to companies – councils and businesses that has banned vaping using the hashtag – #NoVapingBans.

The NNA said:

NNA is calling for an end to flawed policy making which equates vaping with smoking. We endorse policies on vaping in premises being carefully considered and taking into account relative risk: a landmark review published by Public Health England found that “e-cigarettes are estimated to be at least 95% less harmful to health than lit cigarettes”

We recognise that one size does not fit all: what’s appropriate for a cafe might not be appropriate for a hospital, what’s good for one office might not work for another. Vaping policies need to be right for the individual circumstances and it is the right and duty of the business owner to develop an appropriate one.

NNA is writing to organisations to ask them to reconsider their policies on vaping and we urge you to do the same.

Can’t argue with that and you’ll see how to get involved further down.

Vaping Ban Wall of Shame

Incidentally there’s a Wall of Shame of companies that have banned vaping from their indoor and outdoor premises and you can find that HERE and also add your own!

Top of the list of companies shamed is pub and hotel chain Wetherspoon who when asked a couple of years ago why they implemented the ban said it was because staff couldn’t tell the difference between a normal cigarette and an e-cig!

I made a few dry comments at the time and really do think it’s about time they withdrew the ban – not I hasten to add I go into Wetherspoon these days – the pub down the road let’s me vape so no contest!

Speaking of which in my home town there’s very few pubs indeed that allow me to vape – even considerate vaping – so I’m stuck with just three in a town of dozens of pubs and restaurants which given I’m not the most social of blokes isn’t a problem for me but it is for the growing number of vapers.

I visited by dad’s town recently and was pleased to find pretty much all the pubs allowing vaping with the consensus among the pub landlords/ladies it’s perfectly fine as long as you “…ain’t puffing like Thomas the Tank Engine!”

Most had home-made signs clearly pointing out vaping was allowed too – which many more should – I’ll leave a link where you can get NNA backed signs later.

OK the Wall of Shame is pretty sparse at the moment – so let’s see you guys getting over there and filling it up!

I shall be adding my local Chiltern Railways train station in Leamington Spa as soon as I can because despite being open to the elements ‘electronic cigarettes‘ are banned AND lumped in with the NO Smoking ban.

I took this photo heading to Vaper Expo and had planned on sending it to them for an article on the matter – which I guess technically I’m doing right now

Send your Wall of Shame photos and comments to: info @ nnalliance.org and let’s fill that page up!

“Vaping Policies Need to Be Carefully Considered”

The NNA believes vape bans not only send out the wrong message but are also dangerous and put lives at risk as they add to the public’s misconception that if e-cigarettes are banned they must be as bad as analogue cigarettes.

A spokesman for the NNA said:

We aren’t arguing that vaping should be permitted everywhere but we do want employers and managers to carefully consider their policies around vaping, instead of imposing the knee jerk blanket bans which are becoming all too common.

We want Public Health England to take a stronger lead in guiding employers and managers to craft vaping policies appropriate for their circumstances.

We want an end to no-smoking signs which include vaping, especially those which refer to “smoking” an e-cigarette and those which falsely state that it’s illegal to vape on premises.

We want hospitals to at least follow the recommendations of the tobacco control plan, and not to include vaping in their “smoke free” regulations.

We want vaping to carry on working for people as it has for us – which means fostering an environment where vaping is at least tolerated – though not one where vaping is used as a stick to force smokers to switch.

Ways You Can Help The #NoVapingBans Campaign

OK here’s a few ways how you can help with the NNA campaign:

• Write to organizations which don’t differentiate between smoking and vaping – starting with your local council
• Post of the NNA Wall of Shame – contact: info @ nnalliance.org
• Send you HR department the NNA vaping policy guidelines
• Tweet to companies that have banned vaping using hashtag #NoVapingBans
• Get businesses/websites to display Vaping Welcome signs – you can download and print them HERE or buy a window sticker HERE

Actions like these do indeed work as proven by the recent U-turn by giant supermarket chain Aldi who had lumped vaping in with their No Smoking policy.

Following just a few tweets and emails to the company – the signs were removed – so get tweeting!

A Worthy and Important Vaping Campaign To Support

I have to say this kind of campaign is long overdue and I for one am fully behind it and will be pointing my two local pubs to the Vaping Welcome stickers and signs – I’ll keep you updated as to if they use them!

Public Health England has a 5 point guide for organizations stressing the need to differentiate between vaping and smoking – however judging by the growing number of bans this is being ignored:

E-cigarettes in public places and workplaces: a 5-point guide to policy making:

• 1. Make a clear distinction between vaping and smoking
• 2. Ensure policies are based on evidence of harm to bystanders
• 3. Identify and manage risks of uptake by children and young people
• 4. Support smokers to stop smoking and stay smokefree
• 5. Support compliance with smokefree law and policies

The full PHE policy can be found HERE.

Unless we tackle the ignorance of these bans then before we know it we could end up like New York where vaping is banned pretty much everywhere in public so act now!

Despite all the anti media rhetoric we now KNOW that vaping is 95% safer than smoking and we KNOW there’s NO such thing as so called ‘passive vaping‘.

Whilst some progress has been made to educate the wider public on these facts – and despite support from UK MPs – various health organizations and indeed the use of e-cigs in the recent Stoptober campaign – many companies and council are still ignorant to the true facts.

I’ve said it many times before that knee-jerk blanket bans are ridiculous and indeed harmful and like the NNA believe this adds to the the myth vaping is as dangerous as smoking.

So please do get behind the #NoVapingBans campaign in any way you can and let’s get a sensible policy of vaping adopted across the UK.

Here’s a quick clip of Professor Gerry Stimson the Chair of NNA UK on why he thinks vape bans can be avoided by using just a sprinkle of common sense:

For more info and further reading checkout the New Nicotine Alliance website.