On 1 January, Belgium became the first EU country to ban disposable vapes as part of its anti-tobacco strategy. The ban is justified as a measure for public health, the environment and to reduce youth use - but has raised questions about its actual impact in those areas.
On 1 January, a ban on disposable vapes came into force in Belgium. The ban, which is part of the government's national anti-tobacco plan, is justified on both public health and environmental grounds. Frank Vandenbroucke, the country's health minister, calls the initiative "a necessary step to protect young people and reduce dependence on nicotine".
Proponents of the ban argue that disposable vejps, with their often colourful packaging, act as a gateway to nicotine addiction. Health authorities in Belgium have also warned that chronic nicotine use can be particularly damaging to young brains, a theory that often features in the debate on vejp use.
"The problem is that young people start using vejp without always knowing how much nicotine they contain," Nora Melard, spokesperson for the Alliance for a Tobacco-Free Society, told AFP news agency.
Controversial ban
At the same time, e-cigarettes, including disposable vejp, are often promoted as a means of reducing the harm from traditional tobacco. For example, Public Health England has previously reported that e-cigarettes are likely to be up to 95 % less harmful than smoking traditional cigarettes - a report that has been widely publicised in the debate around vejp use.
Important for smoking cessation
Critics of the Belgian ban argue that, despite the potential risks, disposable vejps fulfil an essential function for smokers trying to quit cigarettes. Even going beyond the discussion of harm minimisation, Belgium's ban, and those of future countries such as the UK and France, are criticised for simply being pointless.
Caitlin Notley, Professor of Addiction Studies at the UK's University of East Anglia, commented on the limited effectiveness of such measures in the Financial Times.
"Policies like this [the ban] are important for politicians because they send a clear message, but it is likely to have a limited effect." Caitlyn Notley told the Finacial Times.
Environmental arguments questioned
As is often the case with bans on vejp, snus and other tobacco-free products, despite all the evidence of the dangers of tobacco smoke, regular cigarettes are completely excluded from the political debate.
In countries such as Australia, Turkey, Cambodia, Singapore or any of the other 40 or so countries that have banned vejp products to varying degrees, cigarette sales have been left more or less completely free. Even in Belgium, that approach is being questioned.
"I don't understand why vapes are banned but not tobacco, which is also dangerous," said a young user Ilias Ratbi, to the AFP news agency.
Underway in France and the UK
France is planning to introduce a similar ban soon and has been given the green light by the EU, while the UK, which is no longer part of the Union, will introduce the ban this summer. But while some see the new laws as an important step, others say it's a stopgap measure that doesn't address the root problem: why young people start using nicotine products in the first place.
Part of the EU's tobacco-free vision
The Belgian ban is also part of the country's contribution to the EU's goal of a tobacco-free generation by 2040, which aims to reduce the proportion of smokers from the current 25% to less than 5% of the population. Some member states want to accelerate the timetable, but it is unclear how realistic that goal is. Meanwhile, study after study has shown that one of the most effective ways to kick the cigarette habit is e-cigarettes. Critics of this type of ban therefore argue that it is likely to be either a meaningless symbolic policy that misses the target or even counterproductive.
