Launch of Youth Smoking and Vaping Consultation
The London Tobacco Alliance and Stop Smoking London has welcomed the launch of a UK-wide Government consultation to stop the start of new smokers and address youth vaping which launched yesterday. Read their response here.
Teenagers, parents, teachers, medical professionals, academic experts and others have 8 weeks to submit views on government plans and to share experiences.
Proposals being consulted on include:
- making it an offence for anyone born on or after 1 January 2009 to be sold tobacco products
- restricting the flavours and descriptions of vapes so that vape flavours are no longer targeted at children – we want to ensure this is done in a way that continues to support adult smokers to switch
- regulating point of sale displays in retail outlets so that vapes are kept out of sight from children and away from products that appeal to them, such as sweets
- regulating vape packaging and product presentation, ensuring that neither the device nor its packaging is targeted to children
- considering restricting the sale of disposable vapes, which are clearly linked to the rise in vaping in children. These products are not only attractive to children but also incredibly harmful to the environment
- exploring further restrictions for non-nicotine vapes and other nicotine consumer products such as nicotine pouches
- exploring whether increasing the price of vapes will reduce the number of young people using them
- introducing new powers for local authorities to issue on-the-spot fines (fixed penalty notices) to enforce age of sale legislation of tobacco products and vapes
The London Tobacco Alliance is encouraging all of its partners to read the consultation and to respond before it closes on 6 December 2023.
The consultation can be found here: Creating a smokefree generation and tackling youth vaping – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The proposed actions are outlined in more detail in the policy paper, which can be found here Stopping the start: our new plan to create a smokefree generation – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) .