Welsh Wibble

"The land of my fathers, and my fathers can have it" - Dylan Thomas

It seems we are seeing more idiotic harm reduction deniers emerging, this time in Wales.

[Dr Julie Bishop, consultant in public health for Public Health Wales said:] "Like regular cigarettes, e-cigs should be prohibited in workplaces, educational and public places to ensure their use does not undermine all of the good work that has gone into smoking prevention and smoking cessation by reinforcing or normalising the habit."

I take it we can now safely bin the idea that smoking bans had anything whatsoever to do with protecting bar staff, then?

PHW said that in response to "confusion about whether electronic cigarettes are harmful or helpful" it had reviewed the available evidence on e-cigs to help health professionals and the public.

The word 'help' is used here in its very loosest form, as their "position statement" makes very clear.

"E-cigs mimic smoking a cigarette and some of the promotional material appears like cigarette advertisements.  There is much more work to do but anything which may reverse the progress would be a risk to population health.”

It is sometimes staggering that this kind of codswallop is retched out by people who are paid - by our taxes, of course - to bang on about how very lethal smoking is. While talking about "risk to population health", they seem to have taken no consideration whatsoever of potential benefits to population health that e-cigs will undoubtedly bring.

I'd say that is criminally negligent of them, but I'm sure some court or other will settle that particular debate in the future ... hopefully bringing with it jail time for the most egregious of these clowns.

The rest just trots out the same lame - and increasingly recognised as desperate - arguments against the smoking population choosing its own way of consuming safer nicotine without any help from overpaid public sector rent-seekers like Bishop.

“Anything that could increase their appeal to children and young adults should also be avoided such as sweet flavourings or certain packaging."

Because kids should carry on rebelling with real tobacco instead of e-cigs. And if they smoke already? Well, carry on with the fags, boys and girls, better that than put a tobacco controller out of a job, eh?

“Scientific testing has shown that the amount of nicotine – which is a poison – and other chemicals varies widely between different brands of e-cigs."

Perhaps because there are hundreds of different types of e-cig, but all of them state clearly the level of nicotine in them, you naughty disingenuous pharma shills, you.

"There is no way for consumers to know exactly what they are putting into their body. This is because e-cigs are not licensed or regulated which makes it impossible to carry out accurate tests across the board to determine whether all e-cigs are effective and safe."

Ooh, you little liars! They're regulated under 21 different EU directives.

“By issuing advice to our partners and the public on the pros and cons of using e-cigs we are hoping to provide some clarity on this confusing issue so that we can help people understand why there is concern from a public health perspective.”

Pros and cons? I saw lots of fake cons, but not a single 'pro'. You'd think they had an agenda to adhere to, or something.

[Dr Pat Riordan, Director of the Health and Healthcare Improvement Division which runs Stop Smoking Wales, said:] “Nonetheless, the scientific evidence proves that by using behavioural support services like Stop Smoking Wales, which uses a range of tested nicotine replacement products, you are four times more likely to quit smoking than by willpower alone.” 

Ah, there it is.

As if this dinosaur view of nicotine policy is not bad enough, they have compounded things somewhat by today issuing a barrage of stark staringly ignorant tweets.

Flavours/colours of some #ecigs purposefully appeal to young people. Tobacco advertising is banned, shouldn’t ecig ads be too?
— Public Health Wales (@PublicHealthW) December 12, 2013

#ecigs can harm more than just the individual smoker. Harm can be to society too. Normalising smoking is risky http://t.co/qRSr6P68Pg
— Public Health Wales (@PublicHealthW) December 12, 2013

Some ads for #ecigs call them an aid to quitting. No large-scale evidence they help people quit. Regulation & independent research needed.
— Public Health Wales (@PublicHealthW) December 12, 2013

Using #ecigs means you’re still addicted to nicotine. There is no ‘safe’ way to continue smoking http://t.co/KEWHIEqDPs
— Public Health Wales (@PublicHealthW) December 12, 2013

In your humble host's opinion, it's worth cataloguing these crass bleatings because, be in no doubt, there will be a reckoning at some not-too-distant time from now.

Still, Dr Riordan wants to make clear that her quango is not all bad.

"The last thing we want to do is alienate smokers who are using e-cigs in good faith as a part of their attempt to cut down or quit smoking."

Too late, cupcake, I think you've just done precisely that. Vapers are learning very quickly what duplicitous, self-serving and repulsive vermin you lot are and - I would venture - have always been.

Nice to be reminded that it's still not about health, though.