505. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 379 of 4 November 2021, if he will detail his engagements regarding the decision by a body (details supplied) to invite e-cigarette manufacturers to submit their products for regulatory approval in order that they may be prescribed by general practitioners for those who wish to quit smoking; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12457/22]

Stephen Donnelly, Minister for Health: I note the decision by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency to publish updated guidance on the licensing of e-cigarettes as a medicinal product. I have had no engagements in relation to a similar approach here. 

My current proposals on e-cigarettes are following the evidence provided to me by the Health Research Board in its 2020 analyses on e-cigarettes and related products. Those evidence reviews found that e-cigarettes are not harmless but are likely to be less harmful than tobacco cigarettes, that e-cigarettes are as effective as approved Nicotine Replacement Therapies for smoking cessation at 6 months and that e-cigarette use is associated with an increased likelihood of smoking in adolescents.

In alignment with this evidence the Public Health (Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Bill will require all retailers of e-cigarettes to be licensed and will prohibit the sale of e-cigarettes to persons under 18. My Department will continue to monitor developments and the emerging evidence in relation to e-cigarettes.