Kate Chaney (Curtin, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I'm supportive of any measures that will curb the insidious uptake of nicotine vaping by our young people. The rapid rise of vaping amongst young people is a huge issue in my community. It was one of the first issues that were raised with me when I was elected, and it continues to be raised again and again by constituents. I've had more than 40 individual emails about kids and young adults vaping, all of them worried about the harmful long-term health effects of nicotine addiction.

For so many years, Australia was a world leader in tobacco control, but, with the increase in recreational vaping, it feels like we've lost our way. So I commend the government for introducing the Therapeutic Goods and Other Legislation Amendment (Vaping Reforms) Bill 2024, which prohibits the importation, domestic manufacture, supply, commercial possession and advertisement of non-therapeutic vapes and vaping goods. This is aimed at stopping the supply of non-therapeutic vapes and stamping out the illicit vaping black market. Its aim is to criminalise not vape users but rather vape suppliers. I note that this bill is the final stage of the government's vaping reforms, following a series of regulation changes intended to address the illicit vaping market and its harms on the Australian community. This House has spoken previously about the provision of medical-use vapes as a tool to assist with nicotine dependency. This bill is not about prescription vapes, which can be regulated and provided to patients in need. This is about non-prescription vapes that are being sold in an unregulated market.

The legality of non-prescription vapes in WA is actually different to the rest of the country. In WA, non-prescription vapes, both those containing nicotine and those without, have been illegal since the 2016 court case that found that vapes breached the tobacco control act, which prohibits any product that looks like a cigarette or a cigar. But, despite this ban, vapes are still everywhere in Western Australia. Last year, I was contacted by distressed constituents about a vape shop that had opened on Rokeby Road in Subiaco, 120 metres from Subiaco Primary School. The shop was branded, outfitted and advertised as selling vapes despite the fact that selling vapes was illegal. I'm pleased to say that, along with other community voices, I drew attention to the vape store, and the Subiaco council took action. It's no longer there, but this should not be allowed to happen. In WA, single-use vapes may be technically banned, but the black market continues to publicly and blatantly exist, and it appears that the biggest issue is a complete inability to enforce the prohibition.

That brings me to this bill. I'm pleased that the additional measures in this legislation include creating structures to enable better enforcement through state and federal governments working together and also higher penalties relating to importation, domestic manufacture, supply, commercial possession and advertisements. This is great for WA. Cutting off imports at the border is essential to halting the supply of vapes reaching Australia. Allowing the seizure and forfeiture of vaping products that have been commercially supplied or manufactured empowers state and territory officials to carry out enforcement powers under the new reforms.

Having a coordinated approach between federal and state governments will be essential. There'll be a national vaping working group with senior members from state and territory health departments and police forces, as well as the Australian Border Force, the TGA and the AFP. So, after this legislation is passed, in WA it will now be up to the health and police departments to take an active and collaborative role to enforce the laws that we now have in place.

I do have one concern about the bill. The bill aims to stop the supply of vapes by prohibiting commercial possession, yet the term 'commercial possession' is not defined and is expected to be defined in the regulations. I am concerned that this definition could be so broad that addicted individuals could be caught up in the new criminal charges, so I urge the government to clarify this definition to strike that balance between the need to crack down on vape suppliers and the desire to keep individuals out of the criminal justice system.

We will hear a lot of noise from the tobacco lobby and related parties about why we should not ban vapes but just tax them instead. If you hear this message, I'd encourage you to follow the money. You'll only hear this pro-vaping message from those who stand to benefit from people vaping, whether it's the tobacco companies or the political parties that receive donations. The National Party has taken nearly $400,000 from Philip Morris over the last decade, and I'll be very interested to see how the National Party votes on this piece of legislation.

The reality is that nicotine in vaping is damaging and addictive. ANU research has shown that in the long term nonsmokers who vape are three times as likely to take up smoking as nonsmokers who don't vape. That is why the tobacco industry wants to see vapes normalised: it's their survival and expansion plan—at the cost of our kids. They're trying to build a new generation of smokers. I'm pleased that the government has committed to a public health awareness campaign and further funding for smoking cessation support services to complement the measures in this bill and to ensure that there'll be effective support for those who need it to help them quit nicotine products.

I hear time and time again the growing community and expert concern, not about smokers transitioning down to vaping but about young nonsmokers transitioning up to vaping and then on to smoking. In the words of a 23-year-old constituent, 'Most of my friends vape and none of them were smokers before.' I think that says it all. I've heard stories about how hard it is to quit vaping because you can do it anywhere, even in class at school. I've heard of vapers actually switching to cigarettes to try to quit because at least it's less socially acceptable and you have to go outside, which forces them to do it less often.

As with so many things, the success of this legislation will depend on state and federal cooperation. I implore the WA government and the federal government to work together to enforce these important new laws in the interests of our young people. Thank you.

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