MP introduces bill to ban disposable e-cigarettes in France

On 25 May 2023, MP Francesca Pasquini presented a bill to ban the sale of disposable electronic cigarettes ("puffs"). Called for by anti-smoking associations, this measure has already been mentioned by François Braun, the Minister of Health and Prevention.

Disposable electronic cigarettes – also called “puffs” – appeared in France in the fall of 2021 and have quickly become popular, particularly among young people and teenagers. The wide range of sweet flavors reminiscent of candy is one of the drivers of this craze. However, puffs can contain nicotine salts, the consumption of which quickly leads to addiction. In the absence of a reprocessing circuit, these products are also thrown away among household waste or in nature, causing significant releases of lithium (contained in the battery), plastic and toxic substances.

The success of puffs as an initiation product also contributes to the increase in the consumption of electronic cigarettes among adolescents, whose daily use has tripled in France in the space of two years.[1]. As the gateway effect of electronic cigarettes to smoking begins to be demonstrated, several countries such as Ireland, Germany and Belgium have decided to ban puffs.

Consensus on banning disposable puffs

The question of banning these products is being raised in France today. For several months, the Alliance Against Tobacco (ACT)[2] and the National Committee against Smoking (CNCT)[3] alert the public authorities about the systematic targeting of young people and adolescents by manufacturers and sellers of puffs. Since advertising for these products is prohibited outside of points of sale and under very regulated conditions, it is social media influencers who promote them, far from the gaze of adults.

The associations' calls have finally been heard. On May 3, 2023, the Minister of Health and Prevention, François Braun, acknowledged that he was studying the possibility of banning puffs in France. For her part, the Green MP Francesca Pasquini (NUPES group) tabled a bill on May 25, 2023 aimed at banning puffs. Presented during a press briefing with the ACT, this text has already gathered the signatures of 63 MPs from eight parliamentary groups and is announced as a "transpartisan" initiative, which should also receive the government's approval.[4]Ms Pasquini hopes that this bill can be included on the agenda for the autumn 2023 parliamentary session.

To learn more about puffs, check out our decryption.

Keywords: disposable electronic cigarettes, puffs, Francesca Pasquini, François Braun.

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[1] OFDT, Drugs at 17, Analysis of the ESCAPAD 2022 survey, Trends No. 155, March 2023, 8 p.

[2] Disposable electronic cigarettes "puff", an environmental and health scourge that must be banned urgently, ACT, published April 30, 2023, accessed May 31, 2023.

[3] Puffs: CNCT calls for ban on disposable electronic cigarettes, CNCT, consulted on May 31, 2023.

[4] Health: Puff, banned in several European countries, in the sights of health officials in France, France Info, published on May 25, 2023, consulted on May 31, 2023.

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