The answer to this question will all depend on the country you live in, in respect to the various government actions in setting regulations for electronic cigarettes. Each county appears to have their own views. Some are banning some forms of these e-smokes all together and others are scrambling to set regulations. For example in Canada, if they contain nicotine then they are banned, but other forms are not.
Being as most Governments are run by Politicians, then any decision concerning these alternative smoking devices will be political in nature. This means no doubt that the decision makers will partially base their decisions on what the majority are indicating. They have to keep in mind what their future voters want. Then they need to weigh out the financial benefits to the government coffers. Don’t forget that in some countries there is tobacco tax that is collected on standard tobacco products. Although for the benefit of the health of the people, various Governments have cracked down on the tobacco industry, these companies in many cases are still running at full capacity and paying taxes due.
In the opinion of many, if the Government of their particular country is going to ban the use of electronic cigarettes, then it should be for valid reasons based on accurate research that would support their decisions for doing so. As of to date although there is a lot of controversy, there appears to be very few studies being carried out as to the safety or hazards of the e-smokes. The biggest argument put forth so far is the fact that they contain nicotine. However, so do standard cigarettes and these for the most part have not been totally banned. So it would seem that the standards of judgement being set for e-cigs and regular tobacco products are not equal.