Prince Edward Island has recently implemented changes to its Tobacco and Electronic Smoking Device Sales and Access Act, which came into effect on February 1, 2025. The amendments, passed during the fall sitting of the legislature, aim to crack down on youth vaping by imposing stricter penalties on businesses that violate the province’s rules.

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The Iloilo City Anti-Smoking Task Force (ICAST) is intensifying its efforts to enforce the city’s Comprehensive Anti-Smoking Ordinance, ensuring stricter compliance in public areas, streets, and schools. The ordinance also bans tobacco advertising, promotions, and sponsorships within the city.

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As of June 1, 2025, the Russian Ministry of Transport will prohibit smoking while operating a vehicle. The new regulations will equate cigarettes and vapes with smartphones, which are already banned from use while driving.

Violators will face fines of 1,500 rubles, with offenders being identified by cameras installed on roads. The amendments aim to reduce distractions caused by holding and lighting cigarettes while driving.

The changes will be introduced to both the Traffic Rules and the Code of Administrative Offenses to enforce the smoking ban behind the wheel.

Colombian health organizations and advocates are calling on the Congress to pass Bill 308, which seeks to increase the consumption tax rate on cigarettes to 8,400 pesos over the next two years and introduce a new tax on electronic cigarettes equivalent to 35% of their final retail price. The bill, expected to be voted on in the coming weeks, aims to curb the recent uptick in the percentage of the population consuming tobacco and nicotine products and potentially prevent approximately 450,000 deaths in the country.

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In a recent announcement dated March 10, General Permpoon Chidchob, Thailand’s Minister of Education, outlined a set of measures designed to control the growing problem of e-cigarette use, particularly among students and young people. This move comes in response to the Cabinet’s approval of a proposal from the Prime Minister on April 9, 2024, which called for a collaborative effort between various ministries and agencies to prevent access to and use of e-cigarettes in educational institutions at all levels.

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The Kentucky House of Representatives has voted 82-11 in favor of Senate Bill 100, which seeks to license retailers who sell tobacco and vape products in the state. The bill, initially passed by the Senate in late February, aims to curb the sale of nicotine products to minors and reduce the negative health impact of smoking in Kentucky.

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The Poland Senate has unanimously approved a bill prohibiting the sale of heated tobacco products with characteristic flavors, without proposing any amendments. The amendment to the Act on the Protection of Health against the Consequences of Using Tobacco and Tobacco Products, also known as the Tobacco Act, aims to implement an EU directive that member states should have been applying since October 23, 2023.

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In the 2025 South African Budget Speech, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced a series of proposed excise duty increases on tobacco products and electronic nicotine and non-nicotine delivery systems, commonly known as “vaping” devices. These hikes, which exceed the anticipated inflation rate for the 2025/26 financial year, are set to significantly impact smokers and vapers across the country.

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In recent years, a new trend has emerged among South African youth: the use of e-cigarettes, or vaping. What was once marketed as a tool to help adults quit smoking has now become a widespread phenomenon among teenagers, raising serious concerns about nicotine addiction and the long-term health effects on this vulnerable population.

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The North Dakota House has once again voted down a bill that aimed to increase taxes on cigarettes and vaping products. Senate Bill 2281, which proposed a 25-cent tax hike on cigarettes and additional taxes on vaping products, was rejected by House lawmakers.

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