Thai Minister Of Health: The Use Of E-cigarettes By Young People Is On The Rise, And Supports A Complete Ban On The Import Of E-cigarettes

Thai Minister of Health: The use of e-cigarettes by young people is on the rise, and supports a complete ban on the import of e-cigarettes

Somsak Thepsuthin, Minister of Public Health of Thailand, spoke at the opening ceremony of the 22nd "National Tobacco and Health" Conference, emphasizing the importance of banning the import of e-cigarettes. He called on the public to recognize the dangers of e-cigarettes and support the efforts of the Ministry of Health and related agencies to completely ban the import of e-cigarettes.

According to siamrath on August 1, Somsak Thepsuthin, Minister of Public Health of Thailand, spoke at the opening ceremony of the 22nd "National Tobacco and Health" Conference, emphasizing the importance of banning the import of e-cigarettes.

Somsak said:

"The health hazards of e-cigarettes cannot be ignored, including the risk of cancer and respiratory diseases. These health problems affect not only the smokers themselves, but also those around them. It is particularly noteworthy that the proportion of young people smoking e-cigarettes is the highest and is on the rise, which poses a serious threat to Thailand's current low birth rate and aging society."

Somsak further pointed out that the government has taken measures to crack down on the illegal import and sale of e-cigarettes, while raising public awareness of the dangers of e-cigarettes through publicity. At present, there are regulations on the import of e-cigarettes being submitted to the parliament for discussion. He stressed that it would be a big mistake if the parliament allowed the import of e-cigarettes. Songsak called on the public to recognize the dangers of e-cigarettes and support the efforts of the Ministry of Health and related agencies to completely ban the import of e-cigarettes.

When asked whether it is possible to amend the law to allow the import of e-cigarettes, Songsak firmly opposed it and called on all parties to cooperate, jointly publicize and lobby, and resolutely fight against attempts to amend the law. Similarly, the opposition Pheu Thai Party also made it clear that it does not support the import of e-cigarettes.

At present, many laws in Thailand already involve the control of e-cigarettes. Songsak pointed out that various departments need to strengthen cooperation to ensure that the regulations are fully implemented. Professor Prakit Wateesatokit, chairman of the National Tobacco Control Foundation, also believes that the current regulations are sufficient to combat illegal sales, especially online sales, but law enforcement needs to be strengthened.

Professor Prakit pointed out that although existing laws stipulate that the possession and sale of e-cigarettes are illegal, weak law enforcement has made e-cigarettes still popular among teenagers. As more than 70% of e-cigarettes are sold through online channels, he called on the Minister of Digital Economy and Society (DES) to take stricter measures to close illegal websites.

In addition, Professor Baggett also pointed out that some private companies have tried to achieve free sales of e-cigarettes by lobbying Parliament. He stressed that health-related departments have protested against this, but since Thailand has not yet issued specific enforcement regulations, it is difficult for Parliament to prohibit people related to the tobacco industry from participating in the legislative process. He called for the formulation of relevant regulations as soon as possible to prevent such conflicts of interest.