THE INTRODUCTION of legislation to the NSW Parliament to prohibit the sale of e-cigarettes and accessories to minors has been welcomed by Deputy Premier and Member for Dubbo Troy Grant.
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On the first official day of business of the 56th parliament, NSW Health Minister Jillian Skinner tabled a bill that will amend the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2008, making it an offence to sell e-cigarettes and accessories, including e-liquids, to anyone under 18.
"We are delivering on a commitment we made to protect our children from the potential risks of e-cigarettes and importantly working to ensure children and young people do not become addicted to nicotine or take up tobacco smoking," he said.
"There has been a sharp increase in the use of e-cigarettes by children and young people in other countries and while there is no conclusive evidence that they help people to quit smoking there is concern that e-cigarettes pose a potential risk to children."
The sale of liquid nicotine is banned in NSW unless there is an approval from the Ministry of Health or the product is otherwise lawful under the Commonwealth Therapeutic Goods Act.
If the bill is successful, the offence will carry the same maximum penalty as the sale of a tobacco product to a minor - $11,000 for an individual or $55,000 for a corporation.
Repeat offences will cost individuals $55,000 and corporations $110,000.
Mr Grant said the government would if necessary introduce further legislation to regulate the use and sale of e-cigarettes.
