Belgium has become the first EU country to ban the sale of disposable vapes

[zohaibahd]

In brief: European nations are becoming increasingly serious about cracking down on smoking and vaping, especially among young people. Belgium has become the first country in the European Union to outright ban the sale of disposable vapes starting this month. At the same time, Italy's Milan also ushered in the new year by implementing a ban on outdoor smoking in public spaces.

As reported by The Guardian, Belgian health minister Frank Vandenbroucke didn't mince words when announcing the prohibition last year, calling disposable e-cigarettes an "extremely harmful" product designed to hook a new generation on nicotine. He cited the waste from the non-reusable vapes as being packed with "hazardous chemicals" that damage the environment.

While reusable vape systems aren't included in Belgium's ban, the country does have an ambitious goal of reducing new smokers to zero or near zero by 2040 through various "denormalizing" efforts.

Smoking is already banned in playgrounds, sports fields, zoos, and theme parks. Starting April 1, tobacco products will no longer be sold in large supermarkets or displayed at points of sale.

Recent surveys show Belgium's smoking rate among adults over 15 has fallen from 25.5% in 1997 to 15.3% in 2018. But health officials still felt tougher actions were needed to stay on track to achieve their 2040 target.

As for Milan's new outdoor smoking ban, the smog-prone city is hoping to improve air quality and cut exposure to secondhand smoke by prohibiting lighting up on streets and in crowded public areas. Violators face fines ranging from €40 to €240.

This builds on an existing 2021 rule that made parks, playgrounds, bus stops, and sports venues smoke-free zones. While e-cigs get a pass, the ban is another step in Italy's decades-long effort to reduce smoking rates by introducing stricter regulations.

Nationwide, around 24% of Italians still smoke, according to data from last year. An estimated 93,000 deaths per year are attributed to smoking-related illnesses, according to the health ministry. Italy enacted its first public smoking restrictions back in 1975.

Elsewhere, England, Wales and Scotland are making it illegal to sell single-use vapes starting in June due to environmental and health concerns.

Masthead credit: haiberliu

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Belgium has become the first EU country to ban the sale of disposable vapes

 

[bviktor]

Good. Say no to junk.

 

[emmzo]

Is this article related to tech somehow? Some vapes are chargeable by USB, is that it?

 

[Endymio]

Good. Say no to junk.

And say no to a free society as well -- but yes to an authoritarian nanny state that believes it knows better than you yourself what's "best for you".

 

[Subset6]

And say no to a free society as well -- but yes to an authoritarian nanny state that believes it knows better than you yourself what's "best for you".

Sure, go ahead and pollute other's air for your own selfish desire... nothing wrong with that at all.. this is right period and the world knows it.

 

[Vulcanproject]

And say no to a free society as well -- but yes to an authoritarian nanny state that believes it knows better than you yourself what's "best for you".

To be fair in this case the nanny state isn't stopping you from your right to damage your health with nicotine inhalants. It would just prefer to not force everyone else to pay so much cleaning up your nasty secondary habit of throwing the disposable ones everywhere.

 

[maxxcool7421]

And say no to a free society as well -- but yes to an authoritarian nanny state that believes it knows better than you yourself what's "best for you".

Per your reasoning I can now open a day car in the middle of a gun range.... <golf clap> team red folks ... all the brightest 6th grade reading levels right there...

 

[Marco Mint]

I vape as it finally got me off smoking and I can finally breath properly now. In fact since then I work out and run 3 miles per day most days.
If you're all for banning these things just because you don't personally partake in them, I would like to suggest banning other things that are bad for you also.
Ban all fast foods, bread, cakes, biscuits etc, alcohol and sweets (candy). Also any journeys less than 5 miles aren't to be taken by car, you can bloody walk like I do.
I'd be quite happy if all that other stuff was banned too. C'mon, lets do it and be healthy again like you all want!

 

[Theinsanegamer]

Good. Say no to junk.

Frankly its about time. Making disposable vapes with lithium batteries always seemed so tremendously wasteful. Cartridge vaping is way cheaper too, people are just way too lazy to maintain a vape. Frankly, if you're gonna vape, put the effort into it!

Sure, go ahead and pollute other's air for your own selfish desire... nothing wrong with that at all.. this is right period and the world knows it.

vaping =! smoking.

And say no to a free society as well -- but yes to an authoritarian nanny state that believes it knows better than you yourself what's "best for you".

Vaping has not been banned. Only the single serve disposable vapes have been banned.

The thing about freedom is that it requires constant vigilance. This isnt only against the State's power, but also against the Individual, to ensure they behave correctly. The thing is, people tend not to behave. People have long been littering with these disposable abominations, and despite warnings have continued. So the government the people elect to power had to step in to fix this behavior.

Shut up. It's 2025 and if you're still smoking then go jump off the bridge. Not everything comes down to "freedom" as you nutjobs like to put it. What if I want to snort cocaine and inject heroin? Why aren't you up in arms about not having the freedom to do that? If ketchup contained one tenth the carcinogens contained in cigarettes and vapes they'd remove it from the shelves tomorrow. Would you by crying "freedom" and "authoritarian nanny state" about that?

PS. - My company wants to start selling Flintstones chewable morphine, go make a big stink about not being allowed to do that.

The "tolerant progressive" everyone, who thinks you should delete yourself if you are still addicted to an addictive activity and screams at you, spittle and foam escaping from their mouth, that you are the nutjob.

And in case you didnt notice, there ARE people who are up in arms over drugs like cocaine and heroine not being legal, they've been pushing to legalize those, and other, drugs for decades now. Did you just crawl out from under your state=sponsored rock?

 

[Endymio]

Sure, go ahead and pollute other's air for your own selfish desire... nothing wrong with that at all.. this is right period and the world knows it.

Was your post a joke? Vaping outdoors doesn't pollute the air nor cause health risks to others. Not even Belgium itself is claiming that -- they're saying that cheap disposable e-cigs are "designed to hook a new generation" upon smoking.

Shut up. It's 2025 and if you're still smoking then go jump off the bridge.

I'll ask you once politely to be a little less obnoxious. And I've never smoked a single day in my life. But, unlike yourself, I respect not only my own rights, but others as well.

What if I want to snort cocaine and inject heroin? Why aren't you up in arms about not having the freedom to do that?

I am, actually. But there at least there's a century-old historical precedent. I will note though that, before we illegalized these drugs, they were abused much less, and we had a tiny fraction of the drug-related and associated violent gang-related crime we do now. And you can still buy cocaine, heroin, and most anything else on any inner-city street corner.

Seems like those laws didn't work the way you thought they would, eh ?

 

[Belgeek]

As a Belgian and a vaper I can say that disposable vape is garbage and it's a good thing to ban it. If you want to vape purchase a re-usable one.

One of the biggest issue, apart of the pollution it creates by allowing one time used batteries, is that young people are getting into vape because of that.

It is not forbidden to vape. It is forbidden to sell those junk vaping disposable kit.

 

[Endymio]

People have long been littering with these disposable abominations, and despite warnings have continued. So the government the people elect to power had to step in to fix this behavior.

A fair point. But people have been ignoring laws against robbery, rape, and murder for even longer ... does that mean we enact an authoritarian police state, with real-time monitoring of all personal activity, to stop these crimes? Or ban all activities that might possibly end in violence?

There was a much simpler solution. Since these e-cigs shouldn't be sold to children, why not simply put a bar-code serial number on each. When you purchase one, scan your ID and the serial number. If that vape is found littering a street somewhere, you pay a $1000 fine or do 30 days in jail. Look -- no more littering!

 

[DrSuess]

I don't vape, but if I did and lived in Belgium I would simply board a train once a month and go to another EU country that did sell vapes buy it and return to Belgium. Travel between neighboring EU countries is cheap.

 

[kiwigraeme]

Excellent, disposable vapes are quite often low quality , not also dumped everywhere , but more hazardous to the user, Even some of the permanent ones are low grade and have ltd lifespan , doubt they get replaced in time.
Vapers here should seek , high grade devices , can't remember of hand what they are meant to be made from stainless steel ??

The Freedumb argument by those on here has never been about freedoms. It has solely about their beliefs for the powerful to exploit the rich for gains. Plus their right and those like them to do as they want. freedumb to drive their monster truck through nesting birds, or salmon/tout spawning in river

They complain about Welfare but adore that for corporates and rich . They accuse the sick , disable being deadweight's ( from their posts ) .
Yet in Belgium society is doing a balancing act protecting the environment , people and not having too high a health care bill

No worries Rich guy out of shape stupid injury on mountain , free helicopter flight and huge medical bill picked up by society - ie the rich and powerful still take up huge society resources protecting them , making sure they have rights

I have always argued consistently the naivety of the freedumb people. like running a huge society is so easy black and white , never need make ethical decisions.
Forget terrorist hiding bombs in their bags , heath care providers in every country have limited budgets , they get to decide who lives or dies

There really is no point discussing this topic with freedumb people
They are mostly hypocrites . They complain vigorously as victims , oh the poor old white man in a wealthy country type whining- mostly imaginary monsters under the bed , blaming others they don't have a job, partner. Yet we see them time and again cheering that woke is wrong , the lost of rights for blue states to determine their own outcome, that non binary people can not live a free respectful life

They never qualify hateful, violent rhetoric if they are more extreme eg they care not whit for refugees families rights, or illegal economic migrants, children separated put in camps , tough luck should not have come to pick the strawberries or clean our toilets and definitely not work more than us , have less crime than us and send your kids to university and show us up.

Here is the litmus test for all freedumb lovers here

Have you ever said when corrupt, abusive police have killed innocent trans, POC - that the police abused this person's freedom

Or did you like most say the endless repeated "should have followed police instructions"

Do you whine how J6 were really heroes and abused of their rights by police/FBI

Ie most Freedom people are selfish , lack compassion for those not their own

A few are principled and free consistant and stand up for everyone's rights no matter how much the dislike those groups,
No posters on TS seem to make up last group ie true libertarians or whatever that means

Freedumb people are never like Base Jumpers , Oh well he died doing what he loved ( every death I've seen from Base Jumpers , fellow Jumpers have never whined ) - we do pay their cost if they survive or die . Yes even in death society must attend , cleanup and investigate

TL/DR
waste of time arguing with freedumb people, as they are naive, mostly selfish hypocrites or doing the being of mega corps to remove society protections and regulations that mankind has fought so hard for
, because it supports their unspoken belief system

Unions are bad, helmets are evil , protecting your peace, water , air your very home is evil

 

[Thatsdisgusting]

Some say they ban only vapes but not iqos and electronic cigarettes. Figures.

But you keep naively believe they care about air quality and your lungs well-being. And there’s no such thing as government-wide corruption.

 

[captaincranky]

I deeply wish they'd put the cocaine back into Coca-cola. Caffeine is a very poor, almost worthless substitute, for that good old Peruvian marching powder.

 

[wiyosaya]

And say no to a free society as well -- but yes to an authoritarian nanny state that believes it knows better than you yourself what's "best for you".

Lions and Tigers and Bears, OH MY!

Why didn't you just repost that BS about "millions" of US citizens being abused by immigrants, and that the BS included children, too?

People shot down the immigrants eating pets lie, so some dolt replaced it by another lie with more emotional content to fool the ignorant into believing that lie instead. And you propagate the lie.

Happy New Year, Endy!

 

[wiyosaya]

I don't vape, but if I did and lived in Belgium I would simply board a train once a month and go to another EU country that did sell vapes buy it and return to Belgium. Travel between neighboring EU countries is cheap.

And easy!