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Tag: Malaysia

  • Activists Concerned About Vape Rules

    Activists Concerned About Vape Rules

    Image: Butenkow/Usama

    The Malaysian Vapers Alliance (MVA) is voicing concerns about the potential impact of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 (Act 852) on the vaping community.

    With Act 852 currently in its final review at the Attorney-General’s Chambers, the MVA is urging lawmakers to consider the consequences of overly stringent regulations on vapers, especially ex-smokers who have quit smoking by switching to vaping.

    A survey conducted by the MVA last year revealed 73.7 percent of vapers in Malaysia are former smokers. The MVA cautions the government that classifying vaping products in the same category as cigarettes under the new regulations, including strict measures like a ban on display of vape products, could drive these ex-smokers back to smoking cigarettes. This shift would undermine public health efforts to reduce smoking rates.

    We urge the government to adopt a balanced approach that recognizes the harm reduction potential of vape and provide a supportive environment for vapers to stay off tobacco.

    Khairil Azizi Khairuddin, president, Malaysian Vapers Alliance

    Khairil Azizi Khairuddin, president of the Malaysian Vapers Alliance emphasized the importance of separate regulations between vape and tobacco products to prevent a regression in public health outcomes.

    “Harsh regulations that fail to distinguish between vaping and smoking, like banning the display of vape products, could see many vapers, who have successfully quit smoking traditional tobacco, to revert to their old habits,” Khairil Azizi Khairuddin said. “Such a shift not only jeopardize their health but also reverses nationwide progress in reducing smoking prevalence in Malaysia.”

    “We urge the government to adopt a balanced approach that recognizes the harm reduction potential of vape and provide a supportive environment for vapers to stay off tobacco.”

    The MVA survey also revealed that the majority of vapers (80.1 percent) switched to vape as it helped them quit smoking. The implementation of harsh regulations, that do not consider these facts, could undermine the progress of reducing smoking rates in the country.

    “MVA calls on the ministry of health to ensure that the final version of Act 852 includes sensible regulations that support harm reduction and do not classify vaping products the same as cigarettes. We believe that informed and balanced regulation can protect public health while ensuring that vapers do not revert to smoking,” Khairil Azizi Khairuddin said.

  • Machine Sale Ban Extends to Vapes

    Machine Sale Ban Extends to Vapes

    Photo: evannovostro

    E-cigarettes may not be sold in vending machines, Malaysia’s health ministry confirmed, according to a New Straits Times report.

    According to the ministry, Section 10 of the Control of Tobacco Product Regulations for Public Health Act prohibits selling and displaying all “tobacco” products, including e-cigarettes. “Regulations regarding sales, including through vending machines, are under review and will be enforced alongside the act once approved,” the law states.

    Earlier this week, the Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation criticized the sale of vapes through vending machines at a Kuala Lumper mall, describing the practice as “irresponsible.”

    The vending machine has been removed from the premises after an inspection by health ministry officials.

    The ministry has begun briefing authorities nationwide on the prohibitions under the Control of Tobacco Product Regulations for Public Health Act.

  • Malaysia to Enact Age Restrictions this Year

    Malaysia to Enact Age Restrictions this Year

    Photo: Heorshe

    Malaysia will restrict the sale and purchase of tobacco products and tobacco substitutes to those aged 18 and over this year, reports The Star.

    Lawmakers have been alarmed by rising rates of vaping among underage consumers.

    The recent National Health and Morbidity Survey revealed that the rate of cigarette use among adolescents aged 13 to 17 dropped from 13.8 percent in 2017 to 6.2 percent in 2022. For vaping, however, it increased from 9.8 percent in 2017 to 14.9 percent in 2022.

    “This is a wake-up call. The regulations (of the Act) will be enforced to curb this,” said Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad at the World No Tobacco Day Carnival in Kuala Lumpur June 2, 2024.

     The war on smoking requires a whole-of-government, whole-of-society approach, he added.

     “This includes non-governmental organizations, teachers, retailers, politicians and enforcement bodies, as well as Malaysians in general. We must be united in curbing the smoking and vaping culture,” he added.

  • Vaping Surges 600 Percent in Malaysia

    Vaping Surges 600 Percent in Malaysia

    Photo: fedorovacz

    Vaping prevalence in Malaysia has surged 600 percent in 12 years, reports the New Straits Times, citing a recent study.

    The 2023 Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) found that some 5.8 percent of Malaysian adults are e-cigarette users compared with only 0.8 percent in 2011.

    GATS is a nationally representative household survey conducted in more than 30 countries globally.

    The report also revealed an increase in the percentage of people who used both tobacco and e-cigarettes, from 0.8 percent in 2011 to 3.9 percent last year.

    The 15–24 age group had the highest prevalence (8.6 percent) compared with 7.1 percent for those between 25 and 44.

    The top 3 reasons cited for using e-cigarettes were flavors, the perception of lower risk compared to smoking, and more enjoyment.

    The GATS also found that 41 percent of adult smokers in Malaysia have no plans to quit the habit.

    Another 13 percent said they were thinking about quitting smoking within the next 12 months, and another 37 percent said they planned to stop someday.

    The survey found that around 4.8 million or 19 percent of adults in Malaysia smoke, with 3.7 million or 14.6 percent of adults smoking daily.

    GATS Malaysia 2023 queried 5,780 households across all states, with respondents aged 15 years and above, over two months.

  • Airscream to Invest in Malaysia

    Airscream to Invest in Malaysia

    Photo: Airscream

    Airscream UK plans to invest MYR100 million ($21.12 million) in its operations over the next five years and move its headquarters to Malaysia, reports the Business Times.

    The company has already set up administrative, sales and marketing operations as well as a showroom in Shah Alam, with close to 40 employees locally and 100 globally.

    Airscream founder and CEO Sam Ong cited a robust market and vaping industry ecosystem as reasons for the company’s decision.

    Over the past decade, Malaysia’s vaping industry has grown into a MYR3 billion business, providing employment to more than 30,000 Malaysians, according to the Malaysian Vape Chamber of Commerce.

    Ong believes the market is poised for further growth, potentially driving more foreign direct investments into the country and bolstering job creation.

    “We are also encouraged by the passing of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023, which brings Malaysia on par to other countries around the world, including the U.K., Australia, Thailand and Singapore, which have standalone legislation on tobacco and vape,” Ong was quoted as saying.

    Airscream was established in 2018 as a manufacturer and retailer of the AirsPop vape product.

  • Minister Rejects Call for Religious Cigarette Ban

    Minister Rejects Call for Religious Cigarette Ban

    Image: dragancfm

    Malaysia’s Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad rejected a call to ban cigarettes based on Islamic considerations, reports the Malay Mail.

    “I am not a mufti to make cigarettes haram [forbidden],” he said in response to a lawmaker’s comment at a party convention on Dec. 24.

    The exchange followed the passage in Malaysia of new legislation that regulates tobacco advertisements, packaging and public smoking but excludes a provision that would have made it illegal for Malaysians born after 2007 to buy or consumer nicotine products.

    The so-called generational tobacco ban (GEG) was abandoned after the Attorney General’s Chambers suggested it might violate the constitution by creating different rules for different age groups. Critics however blamed tobacco industry pressure for Malasia’s U-turn.

    Earlier Ahmad had apologized for the failure to retain the GEG in the tobacco law.

  • Malaysia Tobacco Law Passes Upper House

    Malaysia Tobacco Law Passes Upper House

    Photo: natatravel

    Malaysia’s upper house of Parliament has passed the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023, reports The Star. Earlier, the legislation had been approved by the country’s lower house.

    The legislation prohibits the sale and purchase of tobacco products, smoking materials of smoking substitute products and providing any smoking-services to minors.

    A provision banning the sale of tobacco products to individuals born from Jan. 1, 2007, onwards in an earlier version of the legislation was dropped.

    The so-called generational tobacco ban (GEG) was abandoned after the Attorney General’s Chambers suggested it might violate the constitution by creating different rules for different age groups. Critics however blamed tobacco industry pressure for Malasia’s U-turn.

    A day earlier, Malaysia’s newly appointed health minister, Dzulkefly Ahmad, expressed his regrets for the GEG exclusion.

    He noted that 18 engagement sessions with stakeholders and three roundtable discussions had taken place before the bill was finalized.

    “However, human plans, and Allah decides, and fate has placed us here today, where you cannot see or read the GEG provisions in this bill,” said Ahmad. “I apologize sincerely.”

    In related news, new figures suggested that vaping has overtaken smoking as the main method of nicotine consumption among young Malaysians. According to the Southeast Asian Tobacco Control (SEATCO) Alliance, e-cigarette use among this age group is about 30 percent, compared with 12.5 percent for smoking.

    “Claims of harm reduction are unproven and deceptive,” said SEATCO. “It is more accurate to say this is harm initiation for youths that have never smoked and harm substitution for smokers trying to quit,” it added.

    The organization called on Malaysia to follow the example of neighboring countries that have banned e-cigarettes. Vapor products are prohibited in Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Singapore and Thailand.

  • Malaysia Passes Watered-Down Bill

    Malaysia Passes Watered-Down Bill

    Image: PX Media

    Malaysia’s lower house of Parliament has passed the Control of Smoking Products and Public Health Bill without the controversial generational endgame (GEG) clause, reports the New Straits Times.

    The legislation regulates advertisements, packaging and smoke-free places but excludes a provision that would have made it illegal for Malaysians born after 2007 to buy or consume nicotine products.

    Health Minister Zaliha Mustafa said the GEG was dropped due to constitutional concerns. The Attorneys General Chambers had warned that the proposal contravenes Article 8 of Malaysia’s constitution, as it creates unequal treatment before the law between persons born before Jan. 1, 2007, and individuals born after the date.

    Critics blamed Malaysia’s U-turn on tobacco lobbying.

    Zaliha insisted that any shortcomings in the bill could be improved over time.

  • Health Advocates Slam Endgame Reversals

    Health Advocates Slam Endgame Reversals

    Photo: aletia2011

    Health advocates condemned moves in New Zealand and Malaysia to scrap legislation that would have banned tobacco sales to future generations.  

    Passed by the previous government, the New Zealand measure would have outlawed tobacco sales to anyone born after Jan. 1, 2009. It also would have limited the amount of nicotine allowed in smoked tobacco products and cut the number of tobacco retailers by 90 percent.

    After New Zealand’s elections earlier this year, the country’s new center-right coalition announced it would repeal the generational tobacco ban.

    “This is major loss for public health, and a huge win for the tobacco industry – whose profits will be boosted at the expense of Kiwi lives,” Boyd Swinburn, co-chair of Health Coalition Aotearoa (HCA) in New Zealand, was quoted as saying by Reuters.

    HCA pointed to academic research that found the laws could have saved some $1.3 billion in health system costs over 20 years, and reduced mortality rates.

    In Malaysia meanwhile, lawmakers decided to remove a generational tobacco ban from proposed legislation after that country’s attorney general questioned the constitutionality of the endgame clause because it would create two sets of laws for two groups of citizens based on age.

    Former Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, however, blamed the tobacco lobby for Malaysia’s U-turn.

    “Don’t even think for a minute that GEG [generational endgame] was dropped because of some lame excuse of a legal argument proffered by the AG,” he was quoted as saying by The Star. “No, GEG was dropped because of the strong lobby from Big Tobacco.”

    Despite the setback, Jamaluddin said the fight against tobacco would continue. “This is not over,” he said. “One day, public health will win.”

    Even as New Zealand and Malaysia reversed their endgame clauses, England reiterated its commitment to its version of the plan. Asked whether Rishi Sunak would consider following New Zealand and Malaysia’s examples, a spokeswoman for the British prime minister said: “No, our position remains unchanged. This is an important long-term decision and step to deliver a smoke-free generation which remains critically important.”

  • Malaysia Minister Vows to Table Smoking Bill

    Malaysia Minister Vows to Table Smoking Bill

    Photo: somemeans

    Malaysia’s health minister has vowed to table the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023 before the end of the current parliament’s session on Nov. 30, reports The Star.

    “God-willing, I assure you that we will table this Bill before the end of the current Parliament session,” Zaliha Mustafa was quoted as saying.

    His comments came after the Attorney General Chambers reiterated an earlier statement that the Generational Endgame Ban (GEG) clause of the proposed legislation can be challenged in court.

    The GEG seeks to ban tobacco and vape products for anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 2007.

    The Attorneys General Chambers insist this provision contravenes Article 8 of Malaysia’s constitution, as it creates unequal treatment before the law between a person born before that date and individuals born after the date.

    It was unclear from contradictory reports whether the bill heading to parliament still includes the GEG. An earlier report by CodeBlue suggested the clause had been removed in response to the constitutional concerns raised by the Attorney General Chambers.

    The legislation also includes provisions on registration of tobacco products, advertisement, packaging and smoke-free places, among other items.