The UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) wants to make it crystal clear that the regulated nicotine vape industry is in no way connected with the trend of using open vape devices as a delivery mechanism for illegal drugs.
Nicotine vaping was created as a reduced risk product to help adult smokers transition from cigarettes and it has played a significant role in seeing smoking rates drop to record lows.
It has emerged that people are misusing vape devices where e-liquid can be added by the consumer to deliver synthetic cannabinoids, such as Spice and the psychoactive chemical THC, which is found in cannabis.
UKVIA director general, John Dunne, warns: “Consumers can feel confident when they buy regulated products from any reputable supplier that they will be getting nicotine vapes designed to help them transition from cigarettes. I’m worried, however, that there are devices available from unofficial sources which may contain illegal drugs and those who buy them may have no idea what’s in these products.
“There have already been scare stories in the media and this causes people to wrongly believe the nicotine vape industry is responsible for this new trend. We need the government to step up now with a nationwide education campaign to highlight the dangers of obtaining vape devices from unofficial sources, and to explain the differences between legal and illegal vape products.”
According to NHS Inform, synthetic cannabinoids are lab-made drugs, with ‘spice’ a nickname for a substance containing one or more of these. They were originally designed to mimic the effects of cannabis but are in fact more harmful and unpredictable than that.
The UKVIA is committed to upholding the highest standards in the vape sector which is why it backs the introduction of a national vape licensing scheme, which would provide upwards of £50m annually to clamp down on illegal vape sales, backed up with fines of £10,000 n to make rogue retailers think twice before flouting the law.
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