<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/federal-politics" rel="" target="" title="federal government"><span>federal government</span></a><span> has rejected research that claims smoking increased among young people after vape sales were banned last year.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Roy Morgan </span><a href="https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/9936-introduction-of-vaping-bans-leads-to-increase-in-cigarette-smoking-in-australia-with-comment" rel="" target="_blank" title="released survey findings earlier this month"><span>released survey findings earlier this month</span></a><span> with the headline "Smoking increases among young Australians since 'vaping sales ban' in 2024".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The report noted that the legislation, passed in phases in July 2024, has demonstrably "failed to reduce overall rates of smoking and vaping".</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/perth-couple-esta-problem-cruise-cancelled-face-ban-from-travelling-to-usa-exclusive/c776994f-92cf-458f-b1d8-7de44ed985fa" rel="" target="_blank" title="Couple forced to cancel $12k cruise and banned from US over immigration error"><strong><span>Couple forced to cancel $12k cruise and banned from US over immigration error</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It also reported overall rates of smoking and vaping in Australia are higher now than during the second half of last year.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Federal Health Minister Mark Butler today refuted the report's findings and said government-led research showed that "fewer young people are vaping and fewer young people are smoking".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I, along with everyone else, was concerned about the risk that if we shut down access to vapes, that there might be a squeezed balloon effect that resulted in young people taking up smoking cigarettes in greater numbers," Butler said.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/vaping-mark-butler-federal-government-denies-report-linking-vape-ban-to-smoking-was-altered-after-government-intervention/143f5599-fcb1-4230-9f26-69d44ebc4213" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The research I've seen from Gen Vape and from the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute indicates that's not the case."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Butler said he had a "couple issues" with the Roy Morgan research released on July 1, including the fact that some of the period of research pre-dated the vape reforms.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He also said it canvassed a different age cohort than the federal government's Generation Vape project, which was released alongside the Cancer Council.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><span>The Saturday Paper</span></em><span> reported last week that an earlier version of the Roy Morgan research was "scrubbed" from the internet and a report without explicit references to government "failure" was published.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Roy Morgan later restored the original version of the research.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Like much research, this press release on smoking and vaping has raised more questions than it answered," a disclaimer noted.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/police-hunt-gunman-who-shot-police-officer-civilians-manhattan-us/c545d211-0267-4535-a2fb-5372d477de94" target="_blank"><strong><span>Four dead, including police officer, in Manhattan shooting</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Roy Morgan has subsequently undertaken further analysis, which provides the historical context and more detailed data on the use of different and combined products, including illicit tobacco.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"In light of this, and in the interest of transparency, below is the initial release, which includes data from 12 months to January 2024 through to 12 months to May 2025.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We have updated the charts in this release with the illicit tobacco data and removed the highlight of dates on the data figures. We have also updated the labelling of figures to reflect the full-time frame for each data point."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Butler said the government did not intervene with the Roy Morgan research.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/drugs-worth-10-million-dollars-found-hidden-in-chocolate-boxes-and-wine/283cac64-f8c3-4d49-b3f2-fc8125b9aecf" target="_blank"><strong><span>Cocaine and meth found hidden inside wine casks and chocolate boxes</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The federal government today spruiked the results of its school-based OurFutures Vaping Prevention Education Program, which Butler said demonstrated "real-world outcomes in preventing youth vaping".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It involved more than 5000 students at 40 schools.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Research here in Australia was showing that high school students who vaped were about five times as likely to take up smoking," Butler said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Terrifyingly, 12-year-olds who vaped, and there was a fair number of them, were 29 times more likely to take up cigarette smoking than 12-year-olds who did not vape."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Year nine student Nick told media today that the program helped him understand "the impact of vapes on our bodies and our emotional state".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/warnings-climate-change-could-increase-hailstone-damage-australia-cities/cd0aee87-a16e-46aa-8e35-cf879515caf7" target="_blank"><strong><span>Millions in firing line as heavier, bigger hail predicted for Australia</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I've seen a lot more about how it impacts those around you, not just yourself," Nick said. The program's findings were published in medical journal The Lancet and reported students who took part were 65 per cent less likely to have used vapes after 12 months compared to those who didn't do the course.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Another 80 per cent of students said the course will help them handle vaping situations in the future.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The OurFutures program will be rolled out across Australian schools until 2028.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>More solid findings are expected to be released next year.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/how-to-follow-9news-digital/29855bb1-ad3d-4c38-bc25-3cb52af1216f" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP</span></em></strong></a><strong><em><span>: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. 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