I am writing in response to Alice Wu’s commentary on the government’s recent e-cigarette ban, “E-cigarette ban is clueless, elitist government at its worst (February 17)”. Ms Wu criticises the ban as bizarre and ill-reasoned because, first, the greater of two evils – traditional cigarettes – have not been banned altogether; second, because people will be encouraged to buy from the black market; and, finally, because there is apparently scientific evidence that using e-cigarettes is effective in helping people to quit smoking.

Let me start with the latter argument first. Ms Wu’s interpretation of the research paper she cites is misguided. The observed effect of e-cigarettes on smoking cessation is due to regulation of the amount of use and close monitoring of the subjects by clinical professionals. A free market in which e-cigarettes are available without professional intervention is not going to help smokers quit the habit. I recommend that Ms Wu and readers take a look at a systematic review published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine which shows that, in a real world setting, e-cigarette use is associated with a 28 per cent reduced odds of smoking cessation.