Vaping. Photo: Connor Danylenko from Pexels.
Mike Pettit
A Cambridge school principal has called on the new government to change the legislation around vaping to make it available by prescription only.
Speaking at Waipā District Council’s Strategic Planning and Policy committee yesterday, Mike Pettit called for the legislation to happen “overnight”.
“In schools, (vaping) is an epidemic, a disaster, particularly in our intermediate, middle and high schools,” he said.
Pettit is principal at Cambridge Primary School and an elected councillor.
“Educational learning has been affected in Waipā and throughout the country.
Karl Tutty
“Our next step is to hit up the local MPs and get it pushed through as an amendment to the legislation.”
He made the comments after councillors considered a report from Compliance manager Karl Tutty asking whether the council should be more actively involved in reducing vaping use.
“I think we need to do more, it’s an epidemic, if there is anything more we can do, we should,” said Cr Liz Stolwyk who was on livestream from Europe where she said vaping was not as prevalent as in New Zealand.
Mayor Susan O’Regan said the government had dropped the ball on vaping. It came in as therapeutic but instead blossomed into an entire new industry.
Susan O’Regan
“It just blows my mind that we’ve got ourselves into this state.”
Pettit said changing the legislation to limiting vaping sales to 18 years and over was just a sticking plaster.
“We need to engage with MPs and the new government and ‘let’s be a leader at that.”
See: Danger of single use vapes
See: A singular stuff up
See: Government needs to step up
