E-cigarettes in the United Kingdom

UK: Asked about packaging restrictions on e-cigarettes, junior health minister Caroline Johnson said the Department of Health and Social Care was exploring whether any additional measures could be introduced to prevent children from vaping, including restrictions related to packaging. The Tobacco Control Plan which could set out these proposals is yet to be published.

UK - Scotland: The Scottish government published a report yesterday on the findings from the consultation on proposed restrictions on e-cigarette advertising . A total of 757 responses were submitted, mostly by individuals. The respondents were nearly equally divided on all issues: 51.5% opposed further restrictions on advertising, while 50.7% agreed that the use of e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation tool should be limited and that exposure to them by non-smokers should be restricted.

UK: The consultation on the voluntary standard developed by the British Standards Institution (BSI), PAS 8855, on vape product quality, performance and safety issues ends today, 28th September.

UK: Answering a question about the management of e-cigarette waste, London mayor Sadiq Khan said Londoners can recycle waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) at their local household waste recycling centre and that waste bins for small electrical devices had been introduced in communal bin stores, resulting in a 52% reduction in small electricals going into non-recycled waste from London flats. Lastly, Khan noted that all boroughs are encouraged to include the Flats Recycling Package in their reduction and recycling plans.

UK: Unofficial Elf Bar social media accounts that allegedly target minors had a 15% increase in followers between March and September, rising from 557,960 to over 650,000, according to Vape Club data reported by the media. However, the number of unofficial Elf Bar accounts selling the devices on TikTok has decreased from 205 in March to 53 in September. For the past year, ECigIntelligence has repeatedly reported on increased oversight of the market by Trading Standards.

UK: The National Health Service (NHS) today published figures showing that 9% of 11- to 15-year-olds vape, either regularly or occasionally, a 50% increase since 2018. A similar result was reported earlier this summer by the charity Action on Smoking and Health (Ash). At the same time, the NHS reports that 3% of pupils are current cigarette smokers, down from 5% in 2018.

UK: Responding to MPs’ questions about e-cigarettes and young people, junior health minister Maggie Throup said the Department of Health and Social Care is considering banning cartoon characters, images and flavour names which might be appealing to children. Throup added that the department was working with the Environment Agency to remind vape suppliers who place more than five tonnes of products on the UK market per year that they are obliged to register with the waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) producer compliance scheme.