Health Canada and Canadian Vaping Association meeting – October 11, 2022

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Subject:

The Canadian Vaping Association (CVA) requested a meeting with Health Canada (HC) to discuss concerns related to compliance and enforcement.

Date:

October 11, 2022

Participants:

Health Canada (HC)

• Sonia Johnson (Chair)
  • Director General, Tobacco Control Directorate (TCD), Controlled Substances and Cannabis Branch (CSCB)
• Laura Smith
  • Director, Office of Policy and Strategic Planning (OPSP), TCD, CSCB
• Denis Choinière
  • Director, Tobacco Products Regulatory Office (TPRO), TCD, CSCB
• Neil Malik
  • Director, Office of Research and Surveillance, TCD, CSCB
• Sally Gibbs
  • Director, Tobacco, Vaping and Controlled Substances Division (TVCSD), Regional Operations and Enforcement Branch (ROEB)
• Stephen Moir
  • Acting Assistant Director, Office of Compliance of Tobacco and Vaping Products, TCD, CSCB
• Manager, International and Regulatory Policy Unit, OPSP, TCD, CSCB
• Manager, Scientific Regulations Division, TPRO, TCD, CSCB
• Acting Manager, Systems Configuration Unit, Office of Compliance of Tobacco and Vaping Products, TCD, CSCB
• Policy Analyst, International and Regulatory Policy Unit, OPSP, TCD, CSCB (secretariat)
• Acting Manager, Ontario Region, TVCSD, ROEB

Canadian Vaping Association (CVA):

• Darryl Tempest
  • Government Relations Counsel
• Sam Tam
  • President
• Taryn LaVacca
  • Communications Director
• Stephanie Ghio
  • Government Relations Counsel (Québec)

Introduction:

A meeting was held at the request of CVA to discuss concerns related to compliance and enforcement of vaping products.

The Chair opened the meeting with round table introductions.

The Chair reminded participants that this meeting is subject to disclosure as per Health Canada's Openness and Transparency policies. In the interest of transparency, the Department stated that it would be making a record of the meeting publicly available. The handling of information and privacy notice was mentioned and acknowledged.

HC also referred to Article 5.3 of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, its international obligation to protect tobacco control policies from the vested interests of the tobacco industry. It was acknowledged by CVA representatives.

Subjects:

The CVA raised concerns regarding compliance and enforcement of vaping products.

• Illegal products entering the Canadian market
  • The CVA stated further engagement with the Vaping Industry Trade Association of Canada (VITA) would be useful in addressing any potential issues related to illegal products entering Canada.
  • Some new actors distributing non-compliant products that are not from the vaping industry, but those from other industries that are adding vaping products to their portfolio.
  • The CVA raised issues the vaping industry is facing regarding the new excise taxes on vaping products.
• The proposed Vaping Products Reporting Regulations
  • The CVA provided additional context to the submission they submitted to Health Canada as part of the public consultation on the proposed Vaping Products Reporting Regulations, as published in the Canada Gazette, Part I, on June 18, 2022.
  • Health Canada notified the CVA that we could not respond to their comments as this public consultation has since closed.
• Excise taxes on vaping products
  • Issues with obtaining excise stamps for vaping products, consistent with comments they provided to the Canada Revue Agency as part of their public consultation.
  • Health Canada is not responsible for the requirement for excise stamps and therefore is not able to comment on this requirement.
• Age verification
  • The CVA raised concerns regarding the lack of age verification standards, particularly with online sales.

Health Canada thanked the CVA for sharing their views on various issues related to vaping in Canada. HC stressed to the CVA that it takes any issues of non-compliance seriously and indicated it will follow-up with CVA to request further information if needed.

Conclusion:

The meeting was then concluded.

Documents:

• Agenda as provided by CVA