Closing loopholes in Australian vaping laws: Why Australia’s proposed vaping reforms are sound public health policy

Abstract

t’s a story we have heard countless times in recent years from young people – accessing vapes is easy, common, and happening at school, online, and through convenience retailers.1 The widespread availability and retailing of vapes across Australia has gone hand in hand with the rapid rise in young people vaping. The sale of vapes from local shops, positioned near schools, and with their enticing displays of candy and sweets lining the entrance, attracts a new young customer base. The vapes themselves come in the very same candy-scented flavours and are sold cheaply, and illegally, to young people. These self-claimed ‘responsible retailers’ are addicting a new generation to nicotine