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Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Health will conclude the nationwide public hearings on the so-called Tobacco Bill, in the Eastern Cape this weekend.
Since last year, the committee has had health advocates, industry experts, and civil society debate why the Bill should or should not classify and regulate vaping and cigarettes under the same law.
The approval of the Bill would pose restrictions on the sale and use of these products in public and private spaces with the penalties for non-compliance ranging from 3 months imprisonment to 15 years.
The CEO of Vapour Association of South Africa, Asanda Gcoyi, is against the implementation of the bill saying parliament would be prohibiting the industry from marketing vaping as a successful alternative and harm reduction method for cigarette smokers.
She said the association does not dispute that the vaping industry needs to be regulated but rather emphasises that it would be problematic to classify them under the same regulations.
“The Association wants Parliament and the Department of Health to acknowledge the role vaping has played in helping smokers quit combustible cigarettes for longer periods as part of tobacco harm reduction,” Gcoyi said.
The bill would force standard packaging for all the different vaping products and these would not be displayed on shelves.
Gcoyi emphasised that vaping could change South Africa’s public health policy and encouraged people to attend the public hearing to not only discuss the Bill but to hold policymakers accountable.
The proposed legislative and policy changes seek to introduce the following:
*Indoor public places and certain outdoor areas that will be determined to be 100% smoke-free;
*ban the sale of cigarettes through vending machines;
*plain packaging with graphic health warnings and pictorials;
*ban on display at point-of-sale; and
*the regulation and control of electronic nicotine delivery systems and no nicotine delivery systems.
The public hearings will be in Butterworth on Friday, Queenstown, and conclude in East London on Sunday.
