This week Bassetlaw has received national media attention regarding the sale of vapes to those who are underage. Whilst the photographs making the news were from Retford, we also know this has been a problem in Worksop and all over the district, as well as the rest of the country.
This is timely, as on 28 January, we announced plans to go further to tackle youth vaping by banning disposable vapes.
To reduce the appeal of vapes to children, we also announced that new powers will be introduced to restrict vape flavours and packaging. The powers will also allow government to change how vapes are displayed in shops.
To crack down on underage sales, the government will also bring in quicker and simpler £100 fixed penalty fines for shops in England and Wales which sell vapes illegally to children. Trading standards officers will be empowered to act ‘on the spot’ to tackle underage tobacco and vape sales. This builds on a maximum £2,500 fine that local authorities can already impose.
Vaping alternatives - such as nicotine pouches - will also be outlawed for children who are increasingly turning to these highly addictive substitutes.
Being cheap and easy to use, disposable vapes are also the vape of choice for children with 69% of current vapers aged 11 to 17 in Great Britain using disposable vapes (up from 7.7% in 2021).
There are serious environmental concerns over disposable vapes. Over 5 million disposable vapes are either littered or thrown away in general waste every week. This has quadrupled in the last year.
That is why the UK Government, the Scottish Government and the Welsh Government intend to introduce legislation to implement a ban on the sale and supply of disposable vapes. The UK Government will also work with the devolved administrations to explore an import ban.
Trading Standards will lead on enforcing the ban within their local area.
Children should never vape. The number of children using vapes has tripled in the last three years, and the bulk of that increase has been driven by disposables. That is why the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health has said disposable vapes should be banned.
The addictive nature of nicotine means that a user can become dependent on vapes, especially if they use them regularly.
We have a duty to protect children from these potential harms, which is why we will be banning disposable vapes and bringing forward measures in the Bill to restrict vape flavours, displays and packaging. Reusable and refillable vapes will continue to play a valuable role in helping adults to stop smoking.