THE PROPOSED ban on e-cigarettes in public places is ill-informed and a policy decision which could have serious implications. The e-cigarette, if supported and promoted without the scaremongering which is prevalent, could effectively make tobacco usage a thing of the past. The Royal College of Physicians, NICE and ASH all report potential benefits, yet Mark Drakeford knows better. To restrict the use of e-cigarettes will encourage people to return to smoking and perpetuate the health problems of tobacco. It is not a gateway to smoking. It is a gateway from smoking to vaping a far healthier alternative. If the government want to ban e-cigarettes then no doubt they will do so, but let’s not pretend it is in the name of public health.

Lynne James Machen