Britain is set to prohibit single-use vapes starting next year, as announced by a government minister on Thursday. The move aims to address the environmental damage and the escalating use of vapes among children. Health officials have expressed worry over the increasing prevalence of vaping among young adults, particularly due to the appealing designs and flavors that catch the eye in stores.
A 2024 survey by health charity ASH revealed that about one in five children aged 11-17 have experimented with vaping. It is currently illegal to sell nicotine-containing e-cigarettes to anyone under 18 or for adults to purchase them on behalf of minors. The initiative to ban disposable vapes was initially proposed by the previous Conservative government in January but was not enacted before the July election, which the Labour Party won.
Labour's culture minister highlighted that the number of children vaping has tripled over the past three years, and disposable vapes are posing significant environmental issues. "We have been increasingly concerned," she stated on Sky News. "We hope this measure will help to break the cycle where children are starting to vape at increasingly younger ages." The Department For Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) did not provide immediate details on the measure when contacted by Reuters. Media reports indicate that the ban is expected to take effect in June.
A separate ASH study this year found that vapes are the most popular tool for quitting smoking among tobacco users, with nearly 3 million people in Britain having successfully quit smoking with the help of a vape in the last five years.
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