Minister Stephen Donnelly will appear in front of the Cabinet today and will ask them to sign off on legislation that bans the sale of e-cigarettes and vapes to those under 18.

Children under 18 years old will be banned from buying vapes and any other similar product by July under the new bill. Ministers are hoping to see the change signed off this morning during their cabinet meeting. This new legislation will also limit the retailers who can sell nicotine products such as vapes and e-cigarettes. It will also ban advertisements near schools and on public transport. A Government source told the Irish Mirror that the crackdown on advertising is to "limit children’s exposure to commercial messages normalising or glamourising the purchase and usage of e-cigarettes". [caption id="attachment_428937" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Credit: Getty Images.[/caption] To support the bill, Ministers will explain the clear evidence that nicotine exposure at a young age can have long-term consequences for brain development. Recently published surveys of Irish school-aged children show that 9% of 12 to 17-year-olds and 15.5% of 15 and 16-year-olds use electronic cigarettes. A review by the Health Research Board found that children who vape are five times more likely to start smoking. The sale of vapes to teenagers is already banned in several European countries. Also bringing a memo to Cabinet today is Minister for Education Norma Foley. She'll propose providing counselling services in primary schools in seven counties across the country. Some €5m has been allocated for this programme. The minister believes promoting well-being is essential to allowing children to learn and grow.

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