In a parliamentary session on March 3, Minister of State for Health Rahayu Mahzam clarified that children reported by their parents for vaping will not face fines.
Her comments came in response to a question from Member of Parliament Tan Wu Meng (PAP-Jurong), who inquired about the number of vaping cases arising from parental referrals to the police and the Health Sciences Authority’s (HSA) handling of such cases.
Madam Rahayu revealed that over the past two years, HSA received between 4,000 and 5,000 cases involving the possession or use of e-vaporisers referred by the police. Notably, only one case involved a parent reporting their child for vaping.
In this instance, the individual received a warning instead of a composition fine and was referred to the Health Promotion Board (HPB) for counselling.
“Parents who are concerned that their children are vaping can call the HPB QuitLine for a referral to HPB’s smoking and vaping cessation service.
“No enforcement action will be taken against the children,” Mdm Rahayu emphasized.
Dr. Tan elaborated on a situation where a resident discovered their child vaping and, unsure of how to proceed, brought the child to the nearest police station.
The police subsequently referred the case to HSA, resulting in the child being issued a S$300 fine.
He noted that the parents were distressed and worried that this approach, although well-intentioned, might discourage other parents from seeking help for their children.
In response, Mdm Rahayu assured that authorities managed to remediate and address the situation appropriately after Dr. Tan raised the matter.
“In general, we do take a very nuanced approach with regards to voluntary situations where they actually want to stop vaping, and where the parents actually bring their child forward,” she stated.
Such cases are typically flagged to HSA, where authorities provide counselling and issue warnings instead of fines.
Mdm Rahayu encouraged Members of Parliament to highlight any specific cases where parents have approached the police and fines were imposed, so that they can be addressed accordingly.
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