With less than 100 days to go until the World Health Organization’s (WHO) next global tobacco control conference, the Conference of Parties (COP11), the World Vapers’ Alliance is warning that COP11 is on track to become “another disaster for public health”. Instead of embracing progress, the organisation says, the WHO and Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) Secretariat continue their “ideological crusade against harm reduction – ignoring science, silencing consumers, and yielding to billionaire influence”.
A new World Vapers’ Alliance paper, released last week, reveals how countries like Sweden, the UK, New Zealand, and Japan are leading the world in cutting smoking rates by offering less harmful alternatives like vaping, nicotine pouches, and heat-not-burn products. These strategies are delivering real results—smoking in Sweden has dropped to under 6%, and the UK’s evidence-based policies have brought smoking rates to their lowest in history. Meanwhile, Japan halved cigarette sales in just eight years by allowing technology-driven alternatives.
Michael Landl, Director of the World Vapers’ Alliance, said: “Bloomberg’s money may buy silence in some rooms, but science can’t be buried forever. With 100 days to go, countries must step up and resist this elitist, anti-consumer agenda. Harm reduction isn’t controversial, it’s saving lives.”
But the World Health Organization isn’t interested, the World Vapers’ Alliance says, instead of learning from success, it’s doubling down on abstinence-only messaging, fuelled by private anti-vaping lobbyists and the political influence of billionaire funders like Michael Bloomberg.
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