SYDNEY — Australia will water down a planned world first ban on vaping after opposition from the Greens party led the government on Monday (June 24) to agree to amend a bill that would have restricted vapes to those with a doctor's prescription.

The agreement between the ruling centre-left Labor party and the Greens will see legislation pass later this week that restricts the sale of vapes to pharmacies and removes them from retail shelves, where they have fuelled a boom in youth vaping.

However the bill stops short of the government's initial ambition to limit sales only to those with a doctor's prescription, which would have been a world-first. The ammended bill will come into effect on July 1.

Under the compromise deal, first reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, vapes will move "behind the counter" in October and customers will need to have a conversation with the pharmacist before making a purchase. Under-18s will need a prescription.

Health Minister Mark Butler said in a statement that the government "welcomed constructive engagement with the crossbench and secured the support of The Greens for our world leading vaping laws".

Related

---