Police campaign to target rise of vaping in Queensland schools

Queensland police have released a series of anti-vaping videos in a bid to stop the rise of the trending habit.

School kids have been urged to “think twice” about vaping, with Queensland police launching a new series of awareness videos aimed at children.

Instances of children as young as 10 vaping at school have swelled in the past six months, with police saying vape stores are increasingly being broken into and stolen products then being sold to young people.

Superintendent John Hallam said police had a responsibility to educate the community on emerging issues such as vaping, as well as highlighting the effects on the broader community.

“These videos have been created to empower young people to make better decisions, giving them critical thinking skills that will contribute to minimising a range of offending behaviours and improving their health,” he said.

Queensland police are launching a new series of awareness videos aimed at vamping among schoolchildren.

A two-part video series created by Moreton police, and featuring chief health officer John Gerrard, Police Minister Mark Ryan and Health Minister Yvette D’Ath, has been created with the aim of educating kids about the health implications and legalities of vaping.

Mr Ryan said officials held health concerns over vaping, because the substances in the product weren’t regulated or properly recorded by retailers.

“But we’re also seeing an increasing number of young people start vaping,” he said.

“Vaping is caught by tobacco laws. It’s actually an offence for a young person to be provided with vape products, whether you’re a retailer or an adult.”

Mr Ryan said a “stronger regulatory framework” was proposed in a recent regulatory impact statement issued by the government.

Earlier this year an investigation by The Courier-Mail shone a light on the growing issue, revealing kids as young as 10 were being caught with vapes at school.

Schools were also resorting to mass suspensions to deal with vaping, with multiple principals saying it was the no. 1 issue they were facing in school playgrounds.

Parents also revealed harrowing stories of attempting to manage their children’s vaping habits, with teens becoming addicted to nicotine vapes and turning to stealing to manage their habit.

At the time, Education Minister Grace Grace was quoted as “obviously, vaping is a concern, but it’s no bigger an issue than kids bringing cigarettes to school in my day – it’s not a bigger issue than that” – a statement she later said was “taken out of context”.

In April a review undertaken by the Australian National University on behalf of the federal government reported young people using vapes were exhibiting ill-health symptoms, including detrimental effects on lungs, blood pressure and heart rate.

Ms D’Ath said young people needed to be aware vaping could have a detrimental effect on their lungs.

“Queensland Health warns that there are many known harms that arise from e-cigarettes and vaping and young people are among those at greatest risk of harm,” she said.

“At this point in time, there is insufficient evidence to support claims that e-cigarettes are safe.’’