Whanganui District Council backs push for stronger regulatory control over vape retailers
Whanganui District Council has joined the call for local authorities to have more regulatory and enforcement control over vape retailers.
A remit from Wairoa District Council will be presented at Local Government New Zealand’s (LGNZ) annual general meeting later this month.
If passed, LGNZ will advocate for legislative change, asking the Government to allow councils to control the location, density, operation, advertising, product visibility and compliance standards of vape stores in their districts.
The remit said about 71% of vape retailers nationwide operated within 800m of schools, with 29% within 400m.
More than 509,000 New Zealanders vaped daily, including 23% of 18–24-year-olds, it said.
“Communities have raised concerns regarding youth access and exposure, increasing nicotine dependence among rangatahi, retail saturation in vulnerable communities and inconsistent compliance monitoring and enforcement.
“These concerns are particularly significant in rural and provincial communities already experiencing inequitable health outcomes.”
At a meeting on June 30, councillor Julie Herewini said vaping was an ongoing issue for the Whanganui community.
“There are vape stores everywhere and we have very, very little opportunity to influence that space,” she said.
Herewini acknowledged there would be extra work for the council “but I absolutely believe we should be advocating for a greater say”.
Councillor Charlotte Melser, formerly part of Whanganui’s Smoke Free Strategic Leadership Group, said the council had “no teeth” regarding where and how vapes were sold.
Schools were grappling with students vaping and it would be great to have input into how to address that locally, she said.
Ruapehu College principal Marama Allen told the Chronicle last year there used to be a handful of students smoking cigarettes but the number now vaping was significantly higher.
“We’ve found those students who are highly addicted to vaping try to duck out of class regularly to go to the bathroom or outside to vape,” she said.
“It’s really concerning for their health and learning.”
At the June 30 meeting, Herewini, Melser and councillors Josh Chandulal-Mackay, Glenda Brown, Geoff Hipango, Philippa Baker-Hogan, Mike Hos and Rob Vinsen voted to support the remit, with Deputy Mayor Michael Law opposed.
Mayor Andrew Tripe and councillors Ross Fallen and Peter Oskam were absent.
Law said he could not see vaping being a big concern in the future.
“I think the market is going to correct quite quickly,” he said.
“There were huge margins, now there’s not due to taxation.”
Councillor Kate Joblin said she supported local input into where retailers operated and “what conditions of their selling should be”.
“This country has a long history, along with many other places in the world, where we allow the horse to bolt before we shut the door,” she said.
“We can talk about smoking, alcohol or synthetic psychoactive substances.”
The LGNZ annual general meeting is on July 31.
Manawatū District, Stratford District, South Taranaki District, Gisborne District, Napier City, Hastings District and Central Hawke’s Bay District councils are also backing the remit.
Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily Whanganui District Council.