A look back at the highs and lows of vaping in 2022.
In this article...
2022 has been a turbulent year for vaping. There has been fantastic progress for vapers, but also some news that could set back the vaping revolution. Let’s take a look at some of the best and worst points of the year and hazard a guess as to where vaping will go in 2023. Let’s begin our 2022 vaping year in review.
February – Scottish Government Plans Vaping Advertising Restrictions
In February the Scottish Government proposed altering the Tobacco Control Action Plan (2018) and change how vapes can be advertised. Under the proposed changes, vaping would be treated like smoking as opposed to a safer alternative. Also, smokers would find it harder to switch to smoking cessation tools and would reinforce the wrong message that vaping is as harmful as combustable cigarettes.
It’s important that vaping is advertised at the point of sale, where smokers would usually go to purchase their tobacco products. Without this advertising, the only way that they would get this information would be to use a stop smoking service.
The main purpose of these proposed changes, aside from helping to reduce smoking, is to combat underage vaping. But, instead of removing the advertising of vapes the stores should focus on challenge 25 policies[1].
May – New Zealand Smoking Rates Hit All-time Low.
In May New Zealand reported a record drop in the number of smokers. In 2012 there were 16.4% of the population who smoked. Fast forward to 2021 and around 9.4% smokers remain. This dramatic drop goes hand in hand with an increase in the number of vapers. The survey that revealed this also showed that the percentage of quit attempts shot up to 19%.
One of the biggest factors in this increase of vapers is the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products (Vaping) Amendment Act 2020. This act helps to support adult vapers while discouraging underage vaping.
This report shows that support of vaping can reduce the number of smokers, if the government support it[2].
June – The Javed Khan Report
In June, charity executive Javed Khan released an independent review of the government ‘smoke free 2030’ plans. In this review Khan made 15 recommendations to reduce smoking rates in the UK. This plan outlines some huge changes that would greatly support vaping which include:
- Funding stop smoking services by adding a further tax onto tobacco products.
- Increasing the smoking age of tobacco by 1 year every year.
- Promote vaping as an extremely effective quit tool.
- Increase duty tax on tobacco products by 30%
Khan also suggests banning smoking in more outdoor places. This includes areas such as beer-gardens, bars and cafes[3].
September – ASH Report Records Record Number of UK Vapers
In September Action on Smoking Health (ASH) produced a report that revealed that a whopping 4.3 million people now use e-cigarettes. The report also showed that around 57% of vapers are ex-smokers. Also, only 8.1% of vapers have never smoked. This is great news, as it shows that even with the boom of disposables, it’s mainly smokers and ex-smokers that now vape.
Worryingly, the report indicated that 33% of adults believe that vaping is more harmful than smoking. This is most likely due to the media coverage of deaths and illness caused by vaping vitamin E acetate, a harmful chemical that shouldn’t be vaped. Even though this additive is illegal in e-liquid made under EU regulation, black market THC liquid was the main culprit of this injury[4].
November – EU Plans Vape Tax
In November the EU announced plans for a new tax that would increase the cost of all smoking products. Unfortunately, as is the case with most smoking legislation, vaping products were included in this taxation directive. If it where to go through all tobacco products would see the duty double. Even lower strength e-liquid would see an extra 20% increase. Also, the duty on vaping related items would be brought in line with the cost of actual tobacco products[5].
This new tax would be devastating for vapers in the EU and would drastically reduce access to vaping as a safer alternative. Luckily, thanks to Brexit, the UK is no longer part of the EU. This means that the government could go in the opposite direction. Neil McLaren, CEO of Vaping.com/uk, spoke out against this bill. He highlights that if the government were to cut tax on vape products, then the affordability would make vaping more accessible to smokers. This in turn could save the NHS £2.4 billion that would be used to treat smoking related illness[6].
Vaping in 2023
So that was the 2022 vaping year in review, but what will 2023 hold for vapers?
The Fall of Disposables?
Anyone who vapes disposables knows how costly they are. Even with multi-buy pricing, they’re still around £4 each. With the new tax on Chinese exports, this might increase further. Some disposable vapers have already made the switch to nic-salt liquid or bar salt liquid.
These liquids provide much better value for money and could see a huge rise in 2023.
Advice Will Increase
Hopefully the government are going to follow the guidelines set out by Javed Khan. This will see more accurate information about vaping being provided by governing bodies. Although for this to be successful, media attitudes towards vaping will have to change.
Smoking Will Be Harder And Vaping Will Be Easier
Again, following the advice of the Khan Report. Both the cost and age restrictions of smoking will increase. Hopefully this will also be accompanied by lowering the duty on vapes in the UK. If this were to happen then vaping will be more affordable and will become a critical stop smoking tool in 2023.
Bye Bye Vape Expos
Post-pandemic the attendance of vape expos has started to fall. Once a gathering point for the vaping community, these expos used to showcase the very best upcoming vape technology. In recent years these events have been flooded with disposables and have seen drastically reduced numbers of visitors. Unless the format of these events change, then we may see the extinction of vape expos in the UK.
And that’s it! Our 2022 vaping year in review. We’re excited to see what the future holds for vaping. Keep an eye on the TECC Blog for the most up-to-date info on vaping in 2023.
Sources
[1] Scottish Government. (2022). Vaping products - tightening rules on advertising and promotion: consultation 2022.
[2] McClure, T. The Guardian. (2022). New Zealand smoking rates fall to lowest on record, but vaping on the rise.
[3] GOV.UK. Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. (2022). The Khan review: making smoking obsolete.
[4] ASH. (2022). Public support for Government action onf tobacco: Results of the 2022 ASH Smokefree survey.
[5] Business Standard. (2022). Rise in cigarette taxes, first EU-wide vaping levy on the cards.
[6] Gupta, R. Express. (2022). Experts slam EU's 'war on vaping' and urge UK government to reduce vape tax.
