Anti-smoking Group Repeats Calls For Vaping Ban

The Council on Smoking and Health said on Wednesday that it's worried that more people will take up smoking, because a Legco bill banning e-cigarettes and heat-not-burn tobacco has been dropped.

Antonio Kwong, the council's chairman, said he's particularly concerned that teenagers will start using alternative tobacco products before Legco has a chance to vet the bill again in the next term.

Kwong said he'll continue to promote the bill – although some lawmakers say those products should be regulated, not banned.

"One of the main focus of course in the coming months is to continue to advocate for a total ban of these products, we certainly would have to meet different parties and also national members to explain to them, because they might not be aware of the harmful effects of these products and also the international trend," he said.

The city's smoking rate now stands at 10.5 per cent, up 0.4 per cent up from 2017.

The Legco bills committee announced that it would halt all discussions on the matter because there wasn't enough time to complete the work on the bill by the end of the current Legco session next month.