Write to them

[cath77]

Just found this, a one stop shop for contacting MP's, MEP's etc

www.writetothem.com


Great guide here  http://www.clivebates.com/?p=739 with tips on what to write when contacting mp's etc

[Ean33]

i have done this and it took 15 mins to write to all my local councillors, my member of parliament and my 4 local meps 

[cath77]

Nice one

[Ean33]

so far 1 reply and that was a copy and paste from a PA
replied to that raising some points a asked for an appointment to discuss this in person

[danwldr]

done, have written to 6 MEP's, my local MP, and the Scottish minister of health and some lord that has an interest but I don't remember his name now

[danwldr]

First reply, at least its not a generic email

Dear Daniel,



Thank you for your email regarding the Tobacco directive which is
currently under renewal.



The directive will be coming before the Environment, Public Health and
Food Safety Committee in the European Parliament for consideration later
this year. At this stage the European Commission's proposals include
regulating, packaging and the composition of cigarettes and related
products, including electronic cigarettes.



I fully recognise that there are health implications to smoking and I
believe that there should be public awareness of this. Yet once
informed, I believe that there should also be freedom of choice.



However, this freedom of choice should not impinge on the freedom of
others, so a programmatic solution must be found. Smoking has health
implications for smokers and it is scientifically proven that there are
also implications for passive smokers as well. Advertising and the
presentation of smoking at present needs to be reviewed and I believe
that this directive will do just that.



More than ten years have passed since the adoption of the current
directive on the issue, during which time various developments have
occurred. In response to this, I look forward to making concrete
contributions towards the proposed directive when the time arrives.



With reference to your specific comments on electronic cigarettes the
directive will look at this aspect, and I myself would be very
interested in the scientific background that specifically relates to the
health effects before making any judgements.



I hope you find this information helpful and please let us know if we
can be of any further assistance.



Best wishes,



STRUAN


Struan Stevenson MEP
Chairman of the Iraq Delegation
Senior VP of the Fisheries Committee
European Parliament
Brussels

[danwldr]

new reply

Dear Mr Walder,

European Parliamentarians have the bulk of their work concentrated within
specific committees, mine being International Trade, Constitutional Affairs
and Human Rights. All UK Labour MEPs are members of the European
Parliamentary Labour Party, and prior to debate and voting we exchange
information and discuss priorities. My colleague, Glenis Wilmott MEP is a
member of the Environment, Public Health & Food Safety Committee that is
responsible for this piece of legislation. I have advised her office if the
many concerns of constituents with regard to this and she has responded with
the detailed information below that I hope will be helpful to you.

Because e-cigarettes are a relatively new product they are regulated
differently in each EU country. Some countries allow e-cigarettes to be sold
without any regulation at all. Others have banned the sale of e-cigarettes.
As the UK is part of the EU's internal market it is important that we
harmonise the way we deal with this product, otherwise consumers could be
buying unregulated products which do not conform to basic safety standards,
either within their own country, or by easily purchasing it over the
internet from a neighbouring country.

The European Commission has proposed that all 'nicotine containing products'
with more than 2mg per unit should not be classed as tobacco products.
Instead, under the Commission's proposals, nearly all e-cigarettes will need
to get authorisation as a pharmaceutical product, in the same way as
nicotine patches, sprays and gums.

Of course there is a balance to strike. On one hand e-cigarettes have the
potential to be a helpful way to help somebody quit smoking entirely and
greatly improve their health. On the other hand e-cigarettes currently can
contain up to 48mg of nicotine - far more than a regular cigarette, making
them highly addictive. As nicotine is the drug that makes cigarettes
addictive, somebody that tries e-cigarettes could be much more likely to go
on to smoke regular cigarettes. Furthermore, there is no evidence that
e-cigarettes are safe, and it is concerning that they are being marketed as
a 'healthy' alternative to smoking. Currently we do not have any conclusive
evidence either that e-cigarettes are helpful for giving up smoking, or that
they encourage it.

While we do not have this scientific evidence to rely on I think it is wise
to have a cautious approach to e-cigarettes. If they are effective in
helping people to stop smoking, then it is appropriate that they are
regulated in the same way as other smoking cessation tools, such as nicotine
patches.

The Commission proposal is not final and there will be many months of
negotiations by the European Parliament, as well as health ministers from
the UK and other EU countries, before the legislation is agreed. During this
time Labour MEPs will be looking carefully at all of the measures and trying
to find the best way to ensure that we effectively reduce smoking rates in
the UK and across Europe.

A great number of constituents have contacted me who, like yourself, have
found e-cigarettes extremely helpful in giving up smoking and I can entirely
see your point that putting legislation in the way of that laudable goal
would not be a good thing.

I intend to follow the Directive closely as it progresses through the
Parliament and I will keep you informed of any significant developments.

Kind regards,

David

DAVID MARTIN MEP
Labour MEP for Scotland

[Lettie22]

Thanks for sharing Dan!

[Mark Burton]

new reply

Dear Mr Walder,

European Parliamentarians have the bulk of their work concentrated within
specific committees, mine being International Trade, Constitutional Affairs
and Human Rights. All UK Labour MEPs are members of the European
Parliamentary Labour Party, and prior to debate and voting we exchange
information and discuss priorities. My colleague, Glenis Wilmott MEP is a
member of the Environment, Public Health & Food Safety Committee that is
responsible for this piece of legislation. I have advised her office if the
many concerns of constituents with regard to this and she has responded with
the detailed information below that I hope will be helpful to you.

Because e-cigarettes are a relatively new product they are regulated
differently in each EU country. Some countries allow e-cigarettes to be sold
without any regulation at all. Others have banned the sale of e-cigarettes.
As the UK is part of the EU's internal market it is important that we
harmonise the way we deal with this product, otherwise consumers could be
buying unregulated products which do not conform to basic safety standards,
either within their own country, or by easily purchasing it over the
internet from a neighbouring country.

The European Commission has proposed that all 'nicotine containing products'
with more than 2mg per unit should not be classed as tobacco products.
Instead, under the Commission's proposals, nearly all e-cigarettes will need
to get authorisation as a pharmaceutical product, in the same way as
nicotine patches, sprays and gums.

Of course there is a balance to strike. On one hand e-cigarettes have the
potential to be a helpful way to help somebody quit smoking entirely and
greatly improve their health. On the other hand e-cigarettes currently can
contain up to 48mg of nicotine - far more than a regular cigarette, making
them highly addictive. As nicotine is the drug that makes cigarettes
addictive, somebody that tries e-cigarettes could be much more likely to go
on to smoke regular cigarettes. Furthermore, there is no evidence that
e-cigarettes are safe, and it is concerning that they are being marketed as
a 'healthy' alternative to smoking. Currently we do not have any conclusive
evidence either that e-cigarettes are helpful for giving up smoking, or that
they encourage it.

While we do not have this scientific evidence to rely on I think it is wise
to have a cautious approach to e-cigarettes. If they are effective in
helping people to stop smoking, then it is appropriate that they are
regulated in the same way as other smoking cessation tools, such as nicotine
patches.

The Commission proposal is not final and there will be many months of
negotiations by the European Parliament, as well as health ministers from
the UK and other EU countries, before the legislation is agreed. During this
time Labour MEPs will be looking carefully at all of the measures and trying
to find the best way to ensure that we effectively reduce smoking rates in
the UK and across Europe.

A great number of constituents have contacted me who, like yourself, have
found e-cigarettes extremely helpful in giving up smoking and I can entirely
see your point that putting legislation in the way of that laudable goal
would not be a good thing.

I intend to follow the Directive closely as it progresses through the
Parliament and I will keep you informed of any significant developments.

Kind regards,

David

DAVID MARTIN MEP
Labour MEP for Scotland

Plenty of evidence by the very nature of E-cigs that they are safer than cigs and drugs ... vote him out of office and let him take his posh job in a pharma company!

[danwldr]

Another reply

Dear Mr Walder




Thank you for your email to Alyn Smith MEP.





Alyn has been in contact with our group advisors regarding the Tobacco Products Directive, specifically the sections relating to electronic cigarettes, and he has been informed that this is the start of what will be quite a substantial process.

 

 The proposal was published at the end of last year and the European Parliament appointed the Rapporteurs for each of the committees involved. The committee which will be responsible for this file will be the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee which, unfortunately, Alyn is not a member of.

 

 This committee will go through the proposal line by line, submitting specific amendments until they reach a position where the text is agreed upon by the majority of MEPs in that committee. Certain other committees in Parliament have also been asked for their opinion on the text and, once this is agreed upon, the text will then be put to the full Parliament at a plenary session forecasted for September, if passed; this becomes the position of the European Parliament.

 

 This then goes to the Council and, depending on whether they agree with the Parliament's position or not, the text could be amended further and sent back to Parliament again. As the European Institutions must compromise on certain aspects of legislation, this means that the final text is rarely the same as the proposed text. As a result there is very little that Alyn or any other MEP can do to influence this directive at this stage.

 

 We have received a number of emails from constituents on this matter and will bear the concerns in mind and share them with the group members.

 

 One of the main concerns that have been raised with us is that the Commission is proposing to ban electronic cigarettes under the new Directive. This is certainly not the case. Instead, the proposal states:"Extension of the scope of the Directive: Nicotine Containing Products (e.g. electronic cigarettes) below a certain nicotine threshold are allowed on the market, but must feature health warnings; above this threshold such products are only allowed if authorised as medicinal products, like nicotine replacement therapies. Herbal cigarettes will have to carry health warnings" (Page 9 of proposal and article 18 on page 39) However, this may be subject to amendments by the committees involved and so may change.

 

 I thank you for your interest and contacting us. Given your interest in the work of the office, I will if I may add you to our email list.  Your email is of course kept strictly confidential. We are registered under the Data Protection Act and you can opt out at any time.




Kind regards

--

Ania B. Lewandowska

Constituency and Campaigns Assistant to Alyn Smith MEP
Member of the European Parliament for Scotland

[zaphriel]

Worrying that I actually agree with Nick Griffin on something, but still....


Dear Ms. Wick,
 
Thank you for your email regarding the revised European Tobacco Products Directive and in particular Nicotine Containing Products (NCP).
 
Mr Griffin has asked me to reply to you on his behalf.
 

Nicotine replacement therapies such as the use of electronic cigarettes or ‘e-cigs’ have proven to be an effective method for many long term smokers in their quest to ‘kick the habit’ and are being used as a ‘like for like’ replacement and healthier alternative to smoking.

 

There is little doubt that reclassifying these consumer products as medicinal products would have a negative impact on public health, because it would require a change in the operation and performance of the products, and would reduce their appeal and effectiveness for consumers. It would also mean they would have to be removed from the market, leaving consumers and distributors worried that this medicinal regulation will restrict availability.

 

Please be assured that Nick Griffin MEP opposes these amendments and responding directly has offered the following statement for his North West constituents;

 

“The proposal is likely to effectively ban a useful product. I am very much opposed to this measure and support the industry in opposing it. It is another unwarranted attempt by the EU to fix something which is not broken."

 

 

Kind regards

 
 
 
Nicolle Yates

Community Outreach Officer

For Nick Griffin, MEP

 

[zaphriel]

My best reply yet.

Our Ref: WICK01001/01130279
               
 
Dear Ms Wick
 
Thank you for your recent correspondence about the important issue of the EU Tobacco Products Directive and how it will affect electronic cigarettes, and for sharing your personal experience of using e-cigarettes.
 
The Commission proposal is not final and there will be many months of negotiations by the European Parliament, as well as Health Ministers from the UK and other EU countries, before the legislation is agreed. During this time Labour Euro MPs will be looking carefully at all of the measures and evidence, to try to find the best way to ensure that we effectively reduce smoking rates in the UK and across Europe.
 
Personally I am in favour of aids which help people in quitting smoking, indeed members of my own family have used e-cigarettes and I am happy they are no longer smoking traditional cigarettes.
 
Good aids should be available to all and continue to be available; however as legislators we have a responsibility to ensure products are safe, quality controlled and deliver to users what they claim on the package.
 
I will of course bear in mind all the personal cases raised with me by constituents when discussions take place within the EPLP around this directive, before the vote. At the current time we expect the full vote to take place in the September plenary session of the Parliament.
 
Thank you again for writing to me on this important issue and I will ensure your concerns are raised with the rapporteur for this directive.
 
Yours sincerely
Arlene McCarthy

[Victoria]

Just a late night thought and it has probably already been done, is there a database anywhere where we can log all the MEP's that are in support of E Cigs? Just thinking further down the line this could be very useful.

[danwldr]

Just a late night thought and it has probably already been done, is there a database anywhere where we can log all the MEP's that are in support of E Cigs? Just thinking further down the line this could be very useful.

I am just trying to find out who it was that voted against...will let you all know.

[Mark Burton]

We have a big vote out here in California coming up soon.  We lost in the State Senate but it still has to pass the CA state assembly.  I am going to work over the weekend on getting Anti-E-cig senator names and if known, anti E-cig assembly names.

We need to all get in here and start kicking ass. 

[zaphriel]

The EU vote will show up here.

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/plenary/en/minutes.html