An MEP responds to my email re: the German court decision

[OneDay]

Sept 18, 2013 17:59:02 GMT chykensa said:

Is it my imagination or is our campaign to write to MPs, MEPs, etc. finally having some success?

I think the fact that MEPs are saying things like "I assure you that the issue of e-cigarettes has also been brought to my attention, in fact the number of emails and letters that I and my colleagues have received is in the thousands" pays tribute to the fact that we are very much on their radar over this issue.

Keep the pressure on!!

[Bluefish]

Yup it's working, i bet they hate the Internetz

[monty]

Sept 18, 2013 10:53:35 GMT OneDay said:

Dear Oneday

...I am sure most people agree that we do not want a generation of young people recruited as addicts.

Why was it proposed that very low nicotine ecigs and eliquids would be exempt from the legislation? These are the ones designed to get the Shisha users to become addicted to nicotine.

It's all about backhanders, jobs for the boys and girls, and bent politicians.

[Deleted]

Dear Ms H,

Thank you for your email. It is indeed a good thing that so many have been able to beat the unhealthy and expensive habit of cigarette smoking, and I appreciate that e-cigarettes can be a very useful and effective method of cutting down on smoking. I am also aware that many people feel strongly that their access to these products should not be limited in any way.

European Parliamentarians have the bulk of their work concentrated within specific committees, mine being International Trade, Constitutional Affairs and Human Rights. All UK Labour MEPs are members of the European Parliamentary Labour Party, and prior to debate and voting we exchange information and discuss priorities. My colleague Linda McAvan is the MEP leading this draft legislation through the European Parliament, and she has taken evidence from e-cigarette companies, as well as from users, regulators and doctors. After listening to the arguments, Linda tabled amendments proposing a lighter touch regulatory framework for e-cigarettes, designed merely to close some of the current loopholes - such as manufacturing problems, quality control, and ongoing monitoring of use - but which is not as strict as medicines regulation, meaning that companies would not have to test and prove their products in the same way.

There has been a lot of misinformation circulating about a proposed ban on e-cigarettes. It might be worth underlining what has been said in Parliament so far: nobody wants to ban e-cigarettes, and that is certainly not the intention. On the contrary: e-cigarettes are seen as a promising development in smoking cessation and Linda has spoken to many doctors who specialise in tobacco related illnesses and who have been recommending them to their patients.

Since e-cigarettes are such a new development, there is no specific legislation to cover them, and at the moment they are largely unregulated. It is exactly because of the potential of e-cigarettes that it is considered important that consumers can be confident that the products they buy are tested, safe, meet quality standards, and deliver to users what they claim on the package.

The UK Government has been looking at the issue for several years and has recently concluded that e-cigarettes should be regulated in the same way as nicotine gums and patches - i.e. under light-touch medicines legislation. In a vote in the Health Committee of the European Parliament on Wednesday 10 July, a majority of MEPs agreed with this approach. The "medicines" label would change very little in terms of the availability of e-cigarettes in the UK: over-the-counter products like paracetamol are already widely sold in supermarkets, corner shops and garages, as well as in pharmacies. As nicotine is already a well-known substance, e-cigarettes would not be required to undertake costly clinical trials, which may have pushed the price up, and there are even some advantages in terms of a lower VAT rate, and the possibility of e-cigarettes being available free to patients on prescription. Some constituents have raised concerns about extra-strong and flavoured e-cigs being banned under the medicines route, but this would be a decision for the UK regulator - Labour MEPs are in favour of maintaining a wide choice for consumers, as long as the safety and quality of the product is proven. (Nicotine gum and inhalors in different flavours and in strengths of up to 15mg are already available in the UK.)

It is also important to note that anti-smoking groups in Scotland have also spoken of the urgent need to regulate the use of e-cigarettes to avoid creating a new wave of addiction. Health organisations including Cancer Research, the British Heart Foundation, ASH, and doctors associations all support the UK Government medicines approach, as this would ensure that e-cigarettes are not promoted to children or non-smokers, creating a new generation of nicotine addicts (there have already been some press reports about schools having to ban e-cigarettes from the classroom). It would also mean that the products are monitored, as little is known about long-term effects.

We are still a long way away from any changes - the final legislation will only be agreed following a negotiation process involving MEPs and national ministers. Even once a deal is reached, Labour MEPs will be working to ensure that e-cigarette companies will have several extra years in which to adapt to the new rules, so that there are no interruptions on the market.

Thank you again for sharing your views with me. A great number of constituents have contacted me who, like yourself, have found e-cigarettes extremely helpful in giving up smoking and I can entirely see your point that putting legislation in the way of that laudable goal would not be a good thing.

Kind regards,

David

[Deleted]

This is my response....


It is also important to note that anti-smoking groups in Scotland have also spoken of the urgent need to regulate the use of e-cigarettes to avoid creating a new wave of addiction. Health organisations including Cancer Research, the British Heart Foundation, ASH, and doctors associations all support the UK Government medicines approach, as this would ensure that e-cigarettes are not promoted to children or non-smokers, creating a new generation of nicotine addicts (there have already been some press reports about schools having to ban e-cigarettes from the classroom). It would also mean that the products are monitored, as little is known about long-term effects.

So are you proposing to regulate cola and energy drinks that get children hooked on caffeine? Or even vegetables that contain nicotine including the humble and widely loved tomato? What will it be next? Pizza on prescription?

Or worse?

I look forward to hearing from you shortly

Miss (not Ms...I am not a whore!!!) H

[ginge7289]

I received this today -

Thank you for your email regarding the issue of electronic cigarettes. I have had a number of constituents raising similar concerns about the proposed reduction of nicotine in e-cigs and effectively banning them in the EU.

As you may know my stance towards the European Union is not one of further integration, quite the opposite. Nor am I in favour of banning things which are ultimately an issue of personal choice. Many, if not all, of those who use e-cigs will have taken the time to learn about the product before using them. These choices should be respected especially if it leads to a healthier alternative to normal cigarettes. I am concerned by the theory that this ban is coming after pressure from tobacco companies and if that is the case then questions must be asked of the European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Affairs, Tonio Borg.

The Commission’s proposal will result in nicotine thresholds which will be insufficient for individuals who use these e-cigs as a means of quitting tobacco cigarettes all together or as a replacement for them. This could very well send ex-tobacco smokers back to square one therefore making the proposal completely counter-productive.

I have always been opposed to legislation which seeks to control and nanny the British public from an unaccountable seat in Brussels. Laws which govern Britain must be made in Britain and it is for that reason that I have been campaigning so strongly for a referendum on our relationship with the EU. As your MEP, I will be voting against this proposal because it is about personal freedom as well as personal health.

Yours sincerely

David Campbell Bannerman MEP
Conservative Member of the European Parliament for the East of England

[ginge7289]

And another reply -

Thank you for your email which is one of many I have received on this issue.

The vote on the Tobacco Products Directive has been postponed until the
October Plenary session with the support of myself and my colleagues in the
ECR Group, despite a proposal to include it in last weeks agenda.

I understand how important this issue is to you and everyone else who has
succeeded in giving up smoking with the help of e-cigarettes. Please see
below, a press release issued by my colleague, Martin Callanan MEP, who led
on this file for our Group, which may be of interest to you.

Yours sincerely
Robert Sturdy MEP



A real drag as European Parliament threatens to take electronic cigarettes
off the shelves

Brussels, 10th July 2013 -- Electronic cigarettes - which are being
increasingly used as a smoking 'quit aid' - risk being taken off the market
by a short-sighted vote in the European Parliament that will classify them
as a medicinal product, Conservative MEP Martin Callanan has warned.

Today's vote in the parliament's environment and public health committee was
intended to primarily look at ways of making tobacco smoking less attractive
to young people, through mandatory warnings, minimum pack sizes, and rules
on flavourings. However, the revision of the 'Tobacco Products Directive'
would classify most electronic cigarettes as a medicinal product, despite
the fact that in the UK alone 25 percent of all quit attempts were made
using e-cigarettes, making them the most popular quit aid.

1.3 million people in the UK alone now use electronic cigarettes (compared
to nine million tobacco smokers). Before the vote in the parliament today,
users of e-cigarettes (known as vapers) protested, arguing that through
e-cigarettes they were able to kick the tobacco habit.

Today's vote classifying them as medical devices will mean they must undergo
a costly and protracted authorisation processes. As many of the producers of
e-cigarettes are small start-up businesses, such a process could push many
out of business and reduce choice for e-cigarette users.

Mr Callanan, who was the European Conservatives and Reformists Group lead
member on the directive, proposed an amendment that would see e-cigarettes
authorised in a similar way to other nicotine products. Speaking after
today's vote, he said:

"It is preposterous to classify e-cigarettes as medical devices.

"Thousands of people have given up smoking thanks to e-cigarettes. For the
EU to over regulate them is completely counter-productive and hypocritical.

"Electronic cigarette production has become lucrative for many small
businesses and many jobs now depend on e-cigarette production. By making the
authorisation procedure for e-cigarettes so difficult, many of these small
businesses will pack up shop.

"This vote is not the end of this process and we will be working with vapers
to make other MEPs see sense and support e-cigarette producers and users.

"The world has gone mad when tobacco is less regulated than products
designed to end tobacco use."

ENDS

[Deleted]

and yet another reply

Dear constituent,

Thank you for your email to Struan Stevenson MEP setting out your thoughts on a proposal issued by the European Commission to amend current European law concerning the manufacture, presentation and sale of tobacco and related products.

As you are aware, among the products to be affected by the proposed changes are electronic inhalers (e-cigarettes). The Commission proposes to limit the amount of nicotine in solutions sold for use in electronic cigarettes to four milligrams of nicotine per millilitre, unless the products have been classified as for medicinal use. This would render the solution too weak to be a viable source of nicotine for smokers or ex-smokers, or would require manufacturers to apply for a costly licence to manufacture medicinal products.

Many constituents feel similarly strongly and have also contacted Struan on this issue. Rest assured that Struan has examined the arguments and sees the potential e-cigarettes offer as harm-reduction devices to improve human health. He understands that e-cigarettes offer concentrated nicotine to addicts without the 4000 toxins and carcinogens found in tobacco smoke, that use of e-cigarettes removes the risk posed to non-smokers (and especially to children of smokers) by second hand smoke, that e-cigarettes appeal to adult smokers seeking to quit but not generally to children or those not yet addicted to nicotine, that traditional nicotine replacement therapies proposed by the NHS and the pharmaceutical industry have had very limited success in helping smokers quit permanently, and that thousands of British e-cigarette users (and millions across the EU and the world) are likely to return smoking if the directive is amended as foreseen and nicotine concentrations are limited to 4mg/ml. There is no doubt that this will lead to a large percentage of such users dying of smoking-related diseases that they might otherwise have avoided. Such arguments have led Struan to conclude that the proposed changes to limit permitted concentrations of nicotine solution sold in the EU are counter-productive and will do more harm than good.

As a member of the Parliament's Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, Struan is putting forward these arguments and working to convince other MEPs of the foolishness of diluting nicotine solution to the point of uselessness, or of limiting the availability of e-cigarettes by classifying them as a medical device. If you have not already done so I would encourage you to write to your local MP and request that they also raise the matter in Westminster. If we bring to the attention of the public, the political world and the media the strong arguments in favour of e-cigarettes as a harm reduction device and the number of lives which can be saved through their use, we have a very strong chance of winning the argument.

The plenary vote on revision of the Tobacco Products Directive is set to take place on 9 September 2013, although this date is subject to change. We are happy to receive any further comments and suggestions you may have before then.

I hope you find this information helpful and please let us know if we can be of further assistance.

Best wishes,

Catriona


Catriona Meehan

Office of Struan Stevenson MEP
President of the Iraq Delegation
Senior Vice-President of the Fisheries Committee

European Parliament
Brussels
Tel.: [phone]
Fax.: [phone]
email: [e-mail]
www.struanstevenson.com
www.youtube.com/StruanStevenson
www.amazon.com/author/struanstevenson

Keep up the emails folks