PUTRAJAYA: The Health Ministry has no plan to allow the use of alternative devices under the tobacco generational end game (GEG) bill as it is only targeted at individuals born after 2007.
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the group should not be given the choice to smoke any type of substance.
"For what reason (allow alternative devices)? Harm reduction? Harm reduction is for those who already smoke.
"Under the new law, we allow those born before 2007 (to use alternative devices). For those born after 2007, why do we want to give them that option?
"Harm reduction is not needed for individuals born in and after 2007 because they should not smoke. We don't want them to smoke," he told reporters after a fund distribution programme for mental health non-governmental organisations at the Health Ministry here today.
Present was Health Ministry secretary-general Datuk Harjeet Singh.
Khairy said the use of vape and e-cigarettes was illegal because the industry was unregulated all this while.
"As the health minister, I want to regulate this matter.
"When the industry is regulated, they can sell it and only then they can talk about harm reduction. But why do we want to introduce this habit to the younger generation who don't even smoke."