EXCLUSIVE
A man has been charged with possessing liquid nicotine despite Health Minister Mark Butler claiming smokers will not be personally targeted in the vape crackdown.
Trinite Williams, 49, faced the Magistrate’s Court of Western Australia on Friday and pleaded not guilty to possessing liquid nicotine, which is a controlled substance, after police found it during a search of his car on October 8.
Police charged him with possessing a scheduled four Poison under the state’s Medicines and Poisons Act 2014. He is facing a fine of up to $2,000 and/or up to two years jail if found guilty.
Mr Williams’ lawyer Kyle Kutasi told Daily Mail Australia his client was ‘extremely frustrated’ because he believed owning a vape was not against the law.
A 49-year-old Western Australian man was charged for possessing a liquid nicotine in a vape found by police after a search of his car
‘He just had a vape, that’s it. Not litres of nicotine liquid. He had just enough for the one vape for his personal use,’ Mr Kutasi said.
‘Mr Williams is extremely frustrated because he is trying to defend a load of nonsense and it is a complete waste of time and money.
‘It was his understanding that it was not illegal to possess a vape since Health Minister Mark Butler publicly said users would not be penalised.’
Mr Kutasi wrote a ‘please explain’ to Mr Butler about his client’s charges, which are essentially possessing a vape without a prescription.
He added the criminal charges came after multiple public comments by Mr Butler assuring vapers that they would not be the target of the nationwide crackdown.
Australia will ban imports of disposable vapes in January and in March this will be expanded to include all non-therapeutic vapes, including refillable devices, while importers of vapes for medical purposes will need permit from the Office of Drug control.
The ban will include $75 million in extra funding for the Australian Border Force and the Therapeutic Goods Administration to bust vape smugglers.
But at a press conference explaining the crackdown on Tuesday, Mr Butler said ‘there is no penalty for people who use vapes’.
‘I do send this message. These are not measures targeting users. These are not measures that impose any penalty whatsoever on people that are using vapes.
‘There is no penalty for people who use vapes, but there are substantial penalties for people who end up illegally selling them or are possessing them for commercial purposes.’
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Health Minister Mark Butler for comment following revelations of the charges Mr Williams is facing.
Health Minister Mark Butler (pictured) has publicly said users will not be penalised for having a vape, claiming government measures will target suppliers and vendors
Mr Kutasi said police are not listening to Mr Butler’s direction and that the Health Minister needs to step in to stop vape users from being charged.
He suggested vapes be removed from the Therapeutic Goods Act’s poisons list as states and territories have laws against possessing a controlled substance without a prescription.
‘Having vapes under the poisons list and in the same category of cocaine and heroin is absolutely ludicrous,’ Mr Kutasi said.
‘You would think that the government would want to encourage a substance that helps people to quit smoking rather than discourage its use.’
Director of Legalise Vaping Australia Brian Marlow told Daily Mail Australia Mr Butler’s promise not to penalise vape users is a ‘lie’.
‘In my opinion the Australian government is lying to the public if they say they will not be prosecuting vapers,’ Mr Marlow said of the West Australians case.
‘He may get off but we don’t know. The fact is the process of being criminally charged is already punishment enough.’
The Albanese Government has been warned that banning disposable vapes rather then legalising and regulating them will open the door to black market criminals
Mr Marlow said the federal government’s vaping reform forces states and territories to criminalise vapers.
‘If people are concerned with 1.5million Aussie facing criminal charges for vaping they need to demand the government change how they classify vapes,’ Mr Butler said.
‘The only solution to this is for vapes to be regulated like alcohol and cigarettes and not as a therapeutic product.’
Liquid nicotine is a prescribed substance and like any other prescribed substances, it carries a maximum term of imprisonment in numerous states for possession.
In the Australian Capital Territory an individual could face up to two years in jail for possessing liquid nicotine without a prescription.
Vapes have exploded in popularity in Australia as the price of cigarettes have surged beyond $40, prompting the new ban on all vapes.
Health Minister Mark Butler announced on Tuesday the government’s plan to ban the importation of single-use disposable vapes from January 1
The federal government announced plans on Tuesday to ban the importation of single-use disposable vapes from January 1 after flagging vaping law reforms in May.
Under the Federal Government’s smoking reforms, nicotine vapes will only legally be available from a chemist with a prescription, while the importation and sale of nicotine e-cigarettes, pods and liquids will be criminalised.
Nationals Senator Matthew Canavan told Daily Mail Australia an outright ban on the importation and sale of vapes was a ‘Christmas wish’ come true for Chinese gangs.
Mr Canavan is pushing for significant change to the bill, urging the government to create a regulated legal market for vapes.
‘We have evidence that only 10 per cent of vapers have a prescription, leaving the rest with no other option than to return to traditional cigarettes or become a criminal and go to the black market, which will be readily available.
‘The government’s efforts on this will fail, they will not beat the black market. We’ll end up in a worse situation with a greater supply of these inferior products and more criminals pushing vapes on our kids.’
Senator Canavan said more than 1.3million Australian adults who vape would effectively be turned into criminals after the ban.
Nationals Senator Matthew Canavan told Daily Mail Australia an outright ban on the importation and sale of vapes was a ‘Christmas wish’ come true for Chinese gangs
He said the seven-page amendment to the bill would see vapes regulated by strict guidelines similar to alcohol and other tobacco products.
Health Minister Mark Butler claimed the smoking reforms are focused on stopping the domestic black market for vapes, which sees millions of devices sold to young Aussies online or under the-counter at some stores.
‘These reforms will protect Australians, particularly young people, from the harms of vaping and nicotine dependence,’ he said in a statement on Tuesday.
However, Senator Cavanan said a legally regulated market would give Australians access to higher-quality vapes and minimise the incentive to engage with the black market.
Most Australians want the government to legally regulate vaping in the same manner as alcohol and tobacco
Senator Cavanan labelled the reform as a ‘typical Canberra approach’ and said there was a twinge of hypocrisy among politicians.
‘Parliament House has the highest per capita rate of vaping anywhere in the country,’ he said.
‘But we want to tell everybody else you can’t do what we’re doing. It’s a typical Canberra approach.’
A poll, conducted by RedBridge in October, revealed most Australians want the government to legally regulate vaping in the same manner as alcohol and tobacco.
Nearly 70 per cent of the 1,500 people surveyed rated the government’s regulative efforts on vapes as ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’.
Those surveyed said they wanted e-cigarette items to be sold to adults aged 18 years and older through licensed retail outlets.
It would bring Australia in line with New Zealand and the UK, where there are strict regulations on the sale of nicotine vapes and e-cigarettes.
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