restrictions and other requirements of the TPD would have on vapers and those who might switch to vaping in the future. At the time few of them even cared. NNA positioned itself as ‘educators’, offering practical expertise on the use of devices when required, but also in explaining why certain policies would have negative unintended consequences. One of the most difficult concepts to get across has been that, whilst many people do use vaping as a means to stop smoking, that is very far from the be all and end all of vaping. For a great many people switching to vaping is not just the end of their smoking journey but it’s the start of a new journey – one of pleasure, enjoyment and community. You can imagine the look of horror on the regulators’ faces. Over the three years that NNA has been operational, we have engaged with regulators and scientific researchers, and attended countless conferences, seminars and workshops. We have spoken at All Party Parliamentary Groups, responded to consultations and sat on committees formulating standards and guidelines. We have helped formulate public information campaigns, and assisted in the 54
design of courses on vaping for stop smoking services. We have just been to the European Court in an effort to overturn the ban in the EU on another safer nicotine product, snus, and currently we are campaigning against the proliferation of bans on vaping in public spaces [insert links to pages if possible]. But most importantly we have made sure that vapers’ voices are heard wherever vaping is discussed. This has been a war of attrition and we have not always been successful. There is still a huge amount of work to be done and there is still resistance to the idea that people can enjoy the use of nicotine safely, and that this is a ‘good thing’. But as long as we have the support of the consumer community we will carry on doing what we do. Find out more at nnalliance.org and please do sign up as a supporter of NNA. We will have stands at Vape Jam and Vaper Expo so please come and find us if you are going to these events.