A Consultation on Electronic Cigarettes and Strengthening Tobacco Control in Scotland: Analysis of Responses

1 Introduction

1.1 This report presents an analysis of responses to the Scottish Government's consultation paper, Electronic Cigarettes and Strengthening Tobacco Control in Scotland.

Background to the consultation

1.2 The consultation invited views on a range of potential measures to regulate the sale and use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) and to strengthen and extend existing tobacco control measures. The proposals build on the Scottish Government's existing approach as laid out in the national Tobacco Control Strategy - Creating a Tobacco-Free Generation.^[1]

1.3 There has been a marked shift in attitudes to smoking tobacco over the last three decades which has seen smoking rates fall in Scotland, especially after the introduction of smoke-free enclosed public spaces. However, the consultation paper notes that more needs to be done. The paper discussed a set of policy options which would support delivery of actions to deliver the vision described in the Tobacco Control Strategy of a smoke-free Scotland by 2034.

1.4 E-cigarettes have emerged in recent years as a public health topic. The main debate themes around e-cigarettes, as discussed in the consultation paper, can be broadly characterised as: safety, usefulness as a quitting tool, and impacts on tobacco control. The evidence base for each of these is in the early stages of emergence. The paper notes that there is much international debate amongst experts and practitioners about the potential benefits and risks which e-cigarettes pose to public health.

1.5 Against this backdrop, the Scottish Government's intention is to develop policies which balance any potential benefits e-cigarettes might have for smokers wishing to use them to help with quitting or reducing their tobacco use against any negative impacts which may emerge over time. Particular concerns have been raised by some commentators about whether their use could function as a gateway to tobacco smoking, potential reversals of achievements made to de-normalise smoking as an acceptable habit, and safety issues for both users and bystanders. These themes require more high quality evidence before conclusions can be drawn. The Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) sets out an EU-wide response to some of these concerns - for example, by creating a regime intended to create safeguards for consumers. The TPD includes a limitation on nicotine content, a requirement on manufacturers for reporting ingredients, and labelling requirements.

1.6 This consultation was the first time that the Scottish Government had formally sought the views of stakeholders, the industry and the public on e-cigarettes.

The consultation process

1.7 The consultation asked 49 questions and was open for written responses from 10^th October 2014 to 2^nd January 2015. It was published on the Scottish Government website and the Scottish Government wrote to a wide range of stakeholders to ensure they were made aware of the consultation.

1.8 As well as inviting members of the public and stakeholders to respond to the consultation in writing, the Scottish Government held a number of face-to-face meetings with stakeholders to discuss the proposals in the paper. Minutes from the formal meetings are available on the Scottish Government website. The content of those discussions are not included in this analysis. The Scottish Government have considered the analysis in this report alongside those discussions in developing proposals for the Public Health Bill which is included in the 2014-15 Programme for Government.

1.9 As part of the Scottish Government's obligations under Article 5.3 of the World Health Organisation's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the consultation paper asked all respondents to provide a statement of whether they have had any direct or indirect links to, or whether they receive funding from, the tobacco industry. Responses to this question are not discussed in this report.

Overview of written responses

1.10 The final number of responses received was 172. Of these, 94 were submitted by group respondents and 78 by individual members of the public. A profile of respondents by type is set out in Table 1 below. A list of the organisations that submitted a response to the consultation is included as Annex 1 to this report.

Table 1: Profile of Respondents by Type

1.11 Eight broad groups have been used for the main analysis and respondents are generally referred to according to these categories. Points to note about the composition of the groups are:

• The largest group of respondents is third sector organisations and professional bodies. This group includes 11 public health charities and 10 Royal Colleges or Professional Associations.
• The second largest group, the health body or partnership group, includes 6 NHS Boards, 4 Community Health and Care Partnerships (CHCPs), 3 national bodies and 2 Health Board Pharmaceutical Committees.
• The e-cigarette industry or tobacco industry group includes 6 e-cigarette companies,^[2] 3 tobacco companies, a tobacco manufacturers' association and a tobacco distributors' association.
• The general retail or pharmacy group includes 4 general retail-focused respondents, 3 of which are associations or federations. The 5 pharmacy-focused respondents include 2 associations and 3 retailers.
• Of the 16 local authority responses, 5 were general responses^[3], 4 were submitted by Environmental Health and Trading Standards services, 3 by Environmental Health Services and 2 by Trading Standards Services. The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) also submitted a response.^[4]
• The remaining group respondents were categorised as either an 'Other Public Body' or as 'Other' as appropriate.

1.12 The standard approach in the report is to refer to respondents according to their main group classification as set out in Table 1. However, if a proposal or question is of particular relevance to representatives of different sub-types within a group (for example, general retail compared to pharmacy, or e-cigarette companies compared to tobacco industry respondents), or where there are notable differences in opinion by subgroup within the more general category, the specific type of respondent may be referred to.

Structure of the report

1.13 The remainder of this report presents a question-by-question analysis of responses. Results from the 'Yes/No' questions in the consultation are presented in tabular form. Please note that a small number of respondents did not make their submission on the consultation questionnaire, but submitted comments in a free-text or statement-style format. When these responses contained clear answers to one or more of the 'Yes/No' questions these have been recorded. The remaining content was analysed qualitatively under the most directly relevant consultation question. Some respondents included further statements and again these have been included within the qualitative analysis in this report.

1.14 Some respondents provided additional comments at questions which did not ask for further comment. Depending on the number and extent of the comments, these have either been analysed under the specific question at which the comment was made or they have been included within the qualitative analysis for the most relevant question.