Surge in use of heated tobacco products expected after proposed ban in Hong Kong fails to get beyond legislative stage
- There are about 13,100 daily users of such products, study by Tobacco and Alcohol Control Office finds
- Panel in legislature ended its scrutiny of an amendment that proposed to ban alternative smoking products
Hong Kong is expected to see a surge in people using heated tobacco products, officials say, although a study found that the city’s smoking rate has remained stable in recent years.
There were about 13,100 daily users of such products, or 0.2 per cent of all residents aged 15 or above, according to a study by the Tobacco and Alcohol Control Office. It looked into statistics on heated tobacco products for the first time. These products are electronic devices that use technology to heat tobacco, rather than set it alight and burn it as with traditional cigarettes.
“We anticipate an increase in the use of heated tobacco products in future because we have failed to ban [them],” Dr Fung Ying, head of the office, said on Monday.
Her remarks came after a Legislative Council bills committee ended its scrutiny of an amendment which proposed to ban alternative smoking products such as the heat-not-burn devices in the current legislative session.
Fung said she was disappointed with the outcome and vowed to move another bill in the next Legco session.
“At the present stage, our most urgent task is public education about the risks of heated tobacco products and to guard against the misleading claim that they bring a lower risk and observe the trend,” she said.