The Yukon will be part of a Canada-wide system for collecting taxes on vaping products, in a bid to discourage vaping among youth and its associated health problems.

MLAs gave formal approval on Wednesday to Bill 35, the Coordinated Vaping Product Taxation Agreement Act, following a short debate Tuesday on the merits of the approach.

While the federal government collects the tax, it will send the Yukon its share, estimated to be about $780,000 a year, starting Jan. 1, 2025.

The Yukon government, in turn, agrees to not levy any territorial taxes on vaping products.

“By increasing the federal tax on these products, we expect to reduce the widespread consumption among youth, prevent nicotine addiction and help reduce incidences of vaping-related incidences,” said Finance Minister Sandy Silver.

Vaping is on the rise in the Yukon, according to the government.

In 2022, one-third of youth (aged 15-19) and nearly half of young adults (20-24) said they had tried vaping.

Vaping is highest among people aged 15-24.

The tax rate will be $2 per two millilitres, for the first 10 ml of vaping substance in a product, and $2 per 10 ml for volumes beyond that.

This approach is designed to target closed systems such as vaping pods and other single-use devices.

“While the balance of evidence suggests that vaping is less harmful than smoking and is an effective smoking-cessation tool for many, the long-term health impacts of vaping are still unknown,” Silver said.

“(Vaping) can make youth more likely to adopt smoking ….”

Yukon Party health critic Brad Cathers said they recognize the broad-based public support for taxation on tobacco and vaping products and raised no objections to the tax.

The NDP’s health critic, Lane Tredger, questioned the source of the statistics around vaping use. They asked if the government has talked with Yukon youth who vape or had stopped vaping, given that youth are the target of the new tax.

Silver said the government offers QuitPath, free nicotine replacement products and the Smoker’s Helpline.

It appears there was no engagement with vaping or ex-vaping youth.

Tredger also wanted to know if special measures are being considered about flavoured vapes, as a way to reduce vaping by youth.

“I hope that the government will consider other measures than just taxation, which is a punitive measure, and look at reducing flavoured vapes, which are very appealing to young people,” Tredger said.