The Government has introduced ‘historic’ legislation to phase out smoking among young people, extend the smoking ban to outdoor spaces, and clamp down on vaping.
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill, introduced in Parliament, will ‘create a smokefree generation’ by banning the sale of tobacco products across the UK to anyone aged 15 or younger this year.
Legislation for this same ban was first introduced under the previous Conservative Government but did not progress after the election was called, with the new Labour Government confirming over the summer that it will proceed with similar laws including new additions to strengthen the bill.
As part of the new bill, the Government will ‘be given powers’ to extend the current indoor smoking ban to specified outdoor spaces, which could include children’s playgrounds and outside schools and hospitals, subject to consultation.
However, the announcement confirmed that the Government has decided against pursuing plans floated earlier this year to ban smoking in outdoor hospitality areas including nightclubs and sports venues,
To tackle vaping, the new legislation will ban advertising and sponsorship of vape products, and give the Government powers to ‘restrict flavours, display and packaging’.
This follows a recently-announced ban on disposable vapes, which will come into force from June next year under separate laws.
The Government is particularly focused on preventing youth vaping, with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) citing figures showing that a quarter of 11- to 15-year-olds tried vaping in 2023.
Current restrictions on smoke-free areas may also be extended to become ‘vape free’, with a focus on areas where there are children and young adults.
The new legislation will allow the Government to introduce a licensing scheme to sell tobacco, vape and nicotine products in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as ‘on the spot fines’ of £200 for retailers found to be selling these products to people underage.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said the Government is taking ‘bold action’ to create a smoke free generation, to ‘clamp down’ on vaping, and to protect children from the ‘harms of second-hand smoke’.
He added: ‘This historic legislation will save thousands of lives and protect the NHS. By building a healthy society, we will also help to build a healthy economy, with fewer people off work sick.’
Chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty said that a ‘smokefree country’ would prevent disease, disability and premature deaths for future generations.
He continued: ‘The rising numbers of children vaping is a major concern and the Tobacco and Vapes Bill will help prevent marketing vapes to children, which is utterly unacceptable.
‘This is a major piece of legislation which if passed will have a positive and lasting impact on the health of the nation.’
The BMA ‘welcomed’ the new measures on smoking and vaping, in response to the bill’s introduction in Parliament, following its calls for a ban on disposable and non-tobacco flavoured vapes in August.
Chair of the union’s Board of Science Professor David Strain said the new measures are a ‘significant step forward’ to creating healthier environments for the populations while also reducing the burden on the NHS.
He added: ‘But we also need to see the detail of the Government’s consultations on these measures to make sure they can, in reality, deliver what Ministers are promising they can and alongside these new measures, there is an urgent need for investment in the smoking cessation services to help smokers quit.
‘Bringing in more stringent rules to stop people smoking and vaping will lead to a healthier population but for those who are still smoking, many will need support to stop and that means greater investment in the services and staff to give that support.’
Professor Lion Shahab, director of the University College London tobacco and alcohol research group, said the bill includes ‘a number of world-leading measures’, highlighting in particular the ban on smoking for future generations.
‘If parliament passes this new bill, it would put the UK at the very forefront of the fight to eradicate one of the most harmful inventions of modern times and protect the future of the next generation to allow them to live a full life, unencumbered by entirely preventable cancer, cardiovascular and pulmonary disease,’ he said.
But on vaping, he said that ‘legislation to protect youth has to be balanced with the need to support smokers to quit, including with e-cigarettes’, and that the Government must ‘monitor unintended consequences’ of the bill.
A version of this article was originally published by our sister publication Pulse.
