What does 'independent' mean, in relation to THR science? - Workshop | #GFN24

Scientific data are critical to our understanding of the harm reduction potential of novel tobacco and nicotine products. Such data can be used in shaping evidence-based regulation and to inform consumers of the relative risks of tobacco product use. Increasingly, there are calls to preclude data generated by manufacturers in informing policy, as this data is seen by some as not ‘independent’ and biased by commercial goals. This panel session will explore: - What does independent mean when it comes to tobacco harm reduction science? - Why might manufacturers’ data not be acceptable? - Are manufacturers’ data on nicotine products any different from pharmaceutical industry data on novel drugs? - Does not being independent mean that we should not trust the data? Should we ignore it? Or just acknowledge it and move on without looking at it? - What are the dangers of ignoring evidence seen as ‘dependent’ and what does that mean for THR? Are there unintended consequences? - How do we move forward from here? How do we make sure both dependent and independent evidence is used to inform consumers and to help shape regulation? GFN 2024 Workshop - hosted by Ian Fearon with panellists: Marewa Glover, Sarah Cooney, George Hardie and Colin Mendelsohn