KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 2 — Two MPs have urged Putrajaya to announce a ban on nicotine vape as a scheduled poison and to immediately cease collection of excise duties on the product.
Petaling Jaya MP Lee Chean Chung and Kuala Langat MP Dr Ahmad Yunus Hairi both told the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the Ministry of Finance (MOF) to act on the government’s withdrawal of its appeal against a High Court ruling that repealed a 2023 minister’s order exempting liquid nicotine from the Poisons List under the Poisons Act 1952 (Act 366).
“I call on MOF to immediately cease collecting excise duty on nicotine-containing vape liquids,” Lee told CodeBlue in a statement yesterday.
The PKR lawmaker cited Treasury secretary-general Johan Mahmood Merican’s affidavit filed in the High Court in 2023, who said cancelling the exemption of liquid and gel nicotine used in e-cigarettes and vape from the Poisons List would invalidate the government’s collection of excise duties on the substance.
“The government cannot now ignore its own sworn position. A tax is a declaration of legitimacy — the State cannot simultaneously tell the courts a product is an illegal poison and tell the market it is a taxable good. MOF must also commit to refunding the more than RM354 million in excise duties collected since April 2023, and to accounting transparently for how that liability will be met,” said Lee.
“Continued silence only allows this bill — already growing by roughly RM8 million a month — to climb higher at public expense, while leaving businesses and consumers in legal limbo.
“Malaysians deserve a government that acts on the legal consequences of its own litigation decisions, not one that hopes the public will forget a court ruling it was itself party to.”
Dr Ahmad Yunus, who is the head of Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) health bureau, similarly told the MOH to immediately announce an official ban on nicotine vape based on the reinstatement of liquid nicotine as a controlled poison under Act 366.
“This is not merely a policy choice, but a legal obligation following the court decision that has confirmed the delisting as unlawful. Any delay will only prolong the public’s exposure, particularly among young people, to these addictive products,” Dr Ahmad Yunus told CodeBlue in a statement yesterday.
“Second, I also urge MOF to immediately announce the cessation of excise duty collection on liquid nicotine, as well as refunding all excise duties collected since 2023. My call for MOF action is equally important, if not more so: taxation essentially legitimises the presence of a product in the market.
“If vape nicotine is now confirmed to be a controlled poison and unlawful to be sold freely, then it cannot and should not be taxed.”
The Opposition MP stressed that the government shouldn’t allow tax revenue considerations to override its responsibility to protect public health.
“As an elected representative, I maintain that public health is not a commodity to be traded. Taxes cannot be used as a tool to legitimise products that endanger public health, especially the health of the younger generation. Their future must not be put at risk for the sake of industry profits or short-term tax revenue.”
Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad and the government recently dropped their appeal against a High Court ruling in May that struck down the 2023 exemption of liquid and gel nicotine from the Poisons List.
This means that vape and e-cigarette liquids containing nicotine remain on the Poisons List as a Group C poison and cannot be sold for recreational use, except on prescription from a doctor or pharmacist.
Tobacco, which is permitted for recreational use for adults alongside nicotine vapes under the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024, has been exempt from the Poisons List under the Poisons Act 1952, ever since it was previously regulated under tobacco control regulations under the Food Act 1983.
