Vape prescription for Perrottet as calls for stringent regulatory action grow louder

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet says he has a prescription for his vape use, as his government says they are taking strong regulatory action on the sales of illegal vapes.

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet says he has a prescription for his vape, as his government says they are taking strong regulatory action on the illegal sales of e-cigarettes. Picture: NCA Newswire / Gaye Gerard

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet says he has a prescription for his vape, as his government says it is taking strong regulatory action on the illegal sales of e-cigarettes.

The proliferation of illegal, nicotine-filled vapes has caused alarm among doctors and health professionals, who have warned the widespread usage among schoolchildren has undermined decades-long efforts to mitigate nicotine usage by young people.

Conceding he had turned to vapes in an effort to stymie his smoking, Mr Perrottet confirmed he had a prescription in line with current, but widely ignored, health rulings that require users to have a doctor’s prescription to purchase them.

In response to the explosion in usage among schoolchildren, the Albanese government is reportedly considering a range of options to tackle the problem, including new taxes, plain packaging, border checks, intense police scrutiny and outright bans.

Calls to curb vaping have met fierce resistance from an alliance of the Australian Association of Convenience Stores, the Master Grocers Association and the Australian Lottery and Newsagents Association, which has slammed the efforts as “misguided, poorly designed and failing the community’’.

A NSW government spokesman said the state had “strong laws” in relation to vaping and action was being taken to enforce breaches, pointing to the $6.1m worth of illegal vape paraphernalia claimed.

“In NSW we are investing almost $12m in an information campaign targeting young people, to educate on the dangers of vaping,” the spokesman said.

“Action is also being taken to enforce breaches of the rules. In the last 18 months alone NSW Health has seized around 200,000 e-cigarettes and e-liquids containing nicotine.”

Labor leader Chris Minns has offered bipartisan support for the Premier’s approach to vaping, saying the decision to bring in prescriptions was right.

“Bringing in prescriptions for vaping, Labor would support that in government and I’m not going to knock everything the government does. I believe that they made the correct call.”