PROFESSOR Sally Haw’s concerns about the potential of vape product marketing leading to children being initiated into vaping (“E-cigarette displays blamed for rise in youngsters vaping”, The Herald, April 14), seem a little misplaced and could risk making it harder for Scotland’s smokers to switch to vaping if such marketing were banned.

There is never a situation where it is better to smoke than it is to vape. We know that 99.9 per cent of vapers are current or former smokers. The competitor for vaping is smoking, therefore, wherever cigarettes are sold so too should vape products be sold. This is a position that is supported by the Royal Society for Public Health.

Vaping is now recognised by the UK Government as the most popular form of support to stop smoking. However, with virtually all forms of advertising for vape products being banned from May 20 this year, how else are smokers to be exposed to vaping if display of vape products were also banned in shops?

Surely, the key issue is how many young people having tried vaping, go on to vape in the long-term. Encouragingly, very few do. Recent research produced by ASH demonstrated that children are not vaping in significant numbers. Research undertaken by Queen Mary University, London, found no evidence that a child trying vaping for the first time goes on to become a regular vaper.

It is important to note, as your article made clear, the Scottish Parliament has legislated to ban the sale of vape products to under 18s, a move we fully support.

Richard Hyslop,

Chief executive, Independent British Vape Trade Association

50 Broadway, London.