THE CASE FOR | It is a sad irony that in the name of health Australian governments are making a policy error so fundamental it will kill Australian citizens.
There are legitimate concerns about the use of vapes by children. So there bloody well should be. But there should be equal concern about preventing adult smokers of tobacco accessing help that can save their lives.
Tobacco smoking is one of the most dangerous things one can do, the leading preventable cause of illness and premature death, and the harm reduction effects of vaping on this cohort are beyond dispute, abundant international evidence shows.
Yet Australia is taking an absurd, unethical path away from reason towards supporting a black market and the ongoing rampant death of people desperate to quit tobacco.
At the same time, we are grappling with a worrying rise in the illegal use of vapes by children. There are risks associated with vaping, and the existing laws should be applied rigorously to protect children.
This is a group not addicted to tobacco smoking and failing to apply existing regulations to keep them off this evidently selfdestructive path is not optional. So let’s get on with that with a bit of verve and rigour.
But blocking adults from accessing a harm minimisation device that will immediately improve their health and probably save their lives makes no sense. Vaping is to tobacco what methadone and hydromorphone are to heroin. All these measures reduce harm and open a route to recovery and a better life. It’s that simple.
Vaping has risks. But research shows it’s 95 per cent safer than tobacco smoking.
The risk assessment is a nobrainer yet seems to have been missed by too many Australian policymakers. What is going on? Fear? Populism? Ignorance?
It’s not complicated. Children should not have access to a product that is illegal and dangerous to them. Adults should have ready access to a product that should be regulated and may well prolong their lives and will certainly improve their wellbeing.
It’s curious Australian governments are prepared to block access to a product that cuts demand for cigarettes, an insidious killer product that provides fully half of the annual cost of Medicare.
Australia prides itself on being an enlightened international player but is utterly and shamefully off the pace on this issue.
With vaping policy, as with every legislative and regulatory decision, there are risks and benefits to balance.
In this case, the calculation by those supposed to be operating in the public interest borders on criminally negligent.
FIONA PATTEN MP IS LEADER OF THE REASON PARTY
