Clearing the Air - Unpacking the Tobacco and Vapes Bill

While everyone may be talking about the Chancellor's Spring Statement earlier today, our misson at 'The Bench Report' is to highlight other debates and committees that may go unheralded, but are extremely important. Today we look at the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, a landmark piece of legislation aiming to create a smokefree generation in the UK. 

We unpack the key clauses and amendments discussed in Parliament, revealing the complexities and controversies surrounding this significant public health intervention. From the generational smoking ban preventing tobacco sales to those born after 2009, to the stricter regulations on vaping products aimed at curbing youth uptake, we explore the arguments for and against these measures.

We examine the proposed changes to age verification for tobacco and vape sales, including the potential for digital ID. Discover the contentious discussions on advertising bans for vapes and nicotine products, and the potential exemptions for specialist vape shops. We also analyse the debates around extending smokefree areas and the concerns raised about a potential rise in the illegal tobacco and vape market. Plus, we touch upon discussions regarding contaminated e-liquids and a potential ban on cigarette filters.

Source: Hansard - Tobacco and Vapes Bill

Key Takeaways:

• The Bill proposes a generational ban on tobacco sales.
• New measures aim to strengthen age verification for tobacco and vaping products, potentially including digital methods.
• There are debates around a total ban on vape advertising with potential exemptions for specialist retailers.
• The Bill considers extending smokefree areas to protect against second-hand smoke.
• Concerns exist about a potential increase in the illegal trade of tobacco and vapes.
• Discussions included the need for reviews on contaminated e-liquids.
• A proposal was made to ban cigarette filters for environmental reasons.
• The government emphasises the aim to create a smokefree generation and reduce youth vaping.
• Vaping is acknowledged as a potential smoking cessati

Chapters

• 1:43 Generational 'rolling' ban
• 3:55 Raising legal age to purchase to 21
• 6:45 Vaping regulation
• 7:43 Contaminated vapes
• 9:00 Age verification technology
• 10:15 Design of disposable vapes and flavours
• 11:36 Advertising
• 13:32 Capacity of e-liquid tanks, pods and refill containers
• 14:36 Licensing schemes
• 15:44 Smoke free areas
• 17:08 Nicotine patches
• 18:56 Conflicts with EU law
• 19:38 Conclusions

Transcript

Hello, and welcome to another bench report. We are your hosts, Amy and Ivan. As always, do take a look at the episode notes to guide you through our discussion today. Now while everyone's attention is understandably on the chancellor's spring statement Yeah. All the buzz is about the spring statement.

We well, we thought we'd take a look at something a little different. A different kind of debate. A bill, actually. Mhmm. The tobacco and vapes bill that was in a discussion, back on the 03/26/2025.

That's right. It's a pretty significant piece of legislation, wouldn't you say? Definitely. It has the potential to really shake things up in terms of public health policy. And, you know, it touches on a lot of sensitive areas.

It does. So we wanted to kinda dive into this and and really unpack the different facets of this bill, you know, see what's actually being proposed. Yeah. Understand the core arguments for and against. Mhmm.

What it could mean for for public health, of course. Mhmm. But also thinking about, individual freedoms. Right. Because there are a lot of considerations here.

You know? Are we talking about a nanny state, or are we talking about really protecting public health? And and where's that line? I mean, that's that's really where the debate is. That's the heart of it.

And, to get to the bottom of all of this, you know, we've been digging into a bunch of materials. Yeah. What kind of stuff have we been looking at? Excerpts straight from the bill itself, details of these new clauses that have been put forward. And, we've got the actual substance of the amendments that were debated in parliament.

That's right. We've got a lot to cover, so let's jump in. Clause one is where things get really interesting. That's the one. It's where the fireworks start, wouldn't you say?

It's where the battle lines are drawn, definitely. Right. So tell me a little bit about this this generational ban. What does that even mean? Okay.

So clause one essentially wants to make it illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone born on or after the 01/01/2009. Right. The idea, they're calling it, to establish a smoke free generation by, you know, gradually preventing these younger groups from ever being able to legally buy tobacco. It's a big it's a big swing. It is a big swing.

So what what are the arguments, you know, that people are using to support such a a drastic measure, I guess, you could say. I mean, the supporters of the bill, their main argument is this is a crucial move to protect future generations from, you know, this harmful product, incredibly addictive product. And there are some pretty stark statistics around smoking. Right? Oh, absolutely.

Yeah. You know, we're talking about roughly eighty thousand deaths each year in The UK that are linked to smoking. Yeah. It's estimated that about one in four cancer deaths can be attributed to tobacco use. I mean, these numbers are huge.

They're massive. And beyond just, you know, the the tragedy of the human cost, we're talking about a massive economic impact as well. Yeah. The cost of the NHS, to treat all these smoking related illnesses, it's estimated to be about £3,000,000,000 each year. And when you include things like, lost productivity because of smoking related health issues, the total cost to the economy, they think, is something like 18,000,000,000 per year.

So the arguments are pretty strong for at least considering this. I mean, in terms of saving lives and and saving money. Right? That's right. It's about preventing that suffering.

You know? They also really emphasize how addictive nicotine is. And we heard in the debates that, you know, tobacco, sadly, kills about two thirds of its long term users. Mhmm. And a huge majority of smokers, about three quarters, they actually say they wish they never started.

Yeah. So this ban, this generational ban, it's all about preventing those regrets for younger people, trying to make sure they don't fall into that trap. That's really interesting. Now this generational ban is a major part of the bill, but there are other ideas floating around as well. Oh, yeah.

There were. Some amendments, in particular, amendment four. Four. So tell me a little bit about that. What did that propose?

So amendment four took a different tack. Instead of this, you know, birth year ban, it suggested just raising the legal smoking age to 21 across the board. Oh, interesting. So, you know, everybody, no matter when they were born, would have to wait till they're 21 to buy tobacco. So a consistent age limit rather than this rolling ban.

Right. What were the arguments for taking that approach? Well, some people, they had some really practical concerns about the generational ban. You know, how do you actually enforce this thing long term? Yeah.

That's a good point. How can shops reliably tell the difference between adults who might be, you know, very close in age but but born on either side of that 02/2009 cutoff. Oh, yeah. That would create some pretty awkward situations, wouldn't it? Yeah.

Imagine being a shop worker having to to police that. It could be very, very tricky. I can see that leading to some some tense moments at the till. That was a huge So enforceability is a big issue. Yeah.

Huge one. And then there was this worry about driving more people towards the black market for tobacco. Oh, whoop. They brought up Australia as an example. However, there, their really high taxes on tobacco, while well intentioned, actually ended up boosting the black market.

Yeah. People just went underground to get their smokes. So it's this kind of unintended consequence of trying to do the right thing. Exactly. It's this balancing act.

You wanna discourage smoking, but you also don't wanna create a situation where the illegal trade becomes even more appealing. Right. Because then you're losing control over the quality of the product. Who knows what people are actually getting? Exactly.

It could be even more dangerous. And then on top of that, those who are pushing for raising the age to 21, they argued that it could, you know, achieve pretty similar long term results. Oh, really? Yeah. Some modeling suggested that, you know, raising the age to 21 could still lead to pretty much zero tobacco consumption by 2050.

That's interesting. So it's like, okay, if we can achieve similar goals without the hassle and the ethical dilemmas. Exactly. They also talked about the fairness of it. They didn't like the idea of creating these two tiers of adults.

Oh. You know, where people of basically the same age would have different legal rights just because of when they happen to be born. Yeah. It does feel a bit arbitrary, doesn't it, when you put it like that? Yeah.

Some people felt very strongly about that. Okay. So we have the generational ban. We have raising the age to 21. Were there any other amendments or suggestions to kinda tackle this?

Oh, yeah. For sure. Some amendments, like amendment one zero three and a few others, actually wanted to get rid of clause one entirely. Just scrap the whole generational ban idea. Wow.

Okay. So there's a real spectrum of opinions on this. Oh, yeah. Strong feelings on all sides. It really comes down to how much you think the state should intervene in personal choices and, how you weigh the potential benefits against the possible downsides.

Right. Yeah. That makes sense. Now it's not just about tobacco, though, is it? Oh, no.

Vaping's a whole other kettle of fish. Exactly. A big chunk of the bill is focused on on how to regulate vaping, particularly among young people. Yeah. You know, it's almost become a bit of an epidemic, hasn't it?

And a lot of people are worried about the long term health impacts, especially for those who start vaping at a young age. Absolutely. It's a real concern. So what kind of what kind of concrete measures were they discussing? Well, new clause 11 and some related government amendments, they were all about making online age verification much stricter.

Oh, right. So trying to stop kids from buying vapes online. Exactly. You know, it's so easy for young people to to get around age checks online. Yeah.

That's true. So they wanna make sure those systems are really, really robust, make it much harder for kids to get their hands on these products. And what about the actual stuff inside these vapes? I know there were some discussions about contaminated e liquids. Oh, yeah.

That's that's a huge worry. New Claws one actually called for a proper investigation into this whole issue of contaminated vapes. You know, some research from the University of Bath, they actually found spice, that synthetic cannabinoid, in vapes that were being used in schools. That's scary. It's really disturbing.

And there were reports of other things being found too, you know, ketamine, even MDMA. So you've got kids vaping thinking they're just, you know, getting a nicotine hit, and, actually, they're ingesting who knows what. Yeah. It's a very dangerous situation. And, you know, some people were arguing that if you ban disposable vapes, which, you know, is supposed to be good for the environment and maybe reduce youth access, it could actually push people towards refillable vapes.

Oh, interesting. And those are potentially easier to tamper with. Right. So you could actually end up with more contaminated vapes in circulation. Potentially.

It's Right. It's not a simple solution. You know? So it sounds like they need to think very carefully about all the possible repercussions before they jump in with a ban. Definitely.

It's about, you know, trying to predict the unintended consequences. It's not always straightforward. Okay. So then what else were they looking at in terms of trying to stop young people from beeping? Well, there were some really interesting ideas on the table.

New clauses six and seven, for example. These were quite radical. Oh, what were those about? They were talking about actually building age verification technology directly into the vapes themselves. Wow.

That's that's pretty futuristic. How would that even work? So the idea is that the vape would essentially be locked. You wouldn't be able to use it until it got confirmation from a linked app, you know, on your phone or something Mhmm. That the user was over 18.

So like a digital lock on the vape itself. Exactly. I mean, I can see the benefits of that, obviously, obviously, but how practical is it? Well, that's the big question, isn't it? There would be a huge undertaking.

You'd need to get all the manufacturers on board Yeah. Figure out how to do it in a way that's secure, you know, so people can't hack the system. Mhmm. And then there are all the privacy concerns. You know?

Oh, yeah. Because you're basically collecting data on people's vaping habits. Exactly. It's it's really fascinating, though, when you think about it. It's like the future of regulation.

It is. You know, embedding technology directly into products to control who can use them, it's it raises all sorts of interesting questions. For sure. And and it wasn't just the age verification. They were also looking at the actual design of vapes, weren't they?

Yeah. They were. In particular, amendment 36. Right. Amendment 36 was all about giving the government the power to regulate the design, the look, the feel of vapes.

Wow. And the big target was these these high puff count disposables. The ones that seem to be so popular with young people. Exactly. They're cheap, and they last longer.

That's right. And, you know, they're colorful. They come in all these different flavors. They're very appealing. Mhmm.

So the amendment was basically trying to stop these kinds of devices from being sold altogether. Okay. So trying to make them less attractive to that younger market. Absolutely. What about the whole debate around flavors?

Well Because that seems to be a big sticking point. It's huge. And amendment 37, it tackled that head on, but it took a slightly different approach. Instead of banning specific flavors outright, it focused on the words used to describe them. Oh, interesting.

So, you know, more gummy bear or bubble gum or those kinds of things that are clearly aimed at kids. Right. But adult smokers, you know, who are using vapes to try and quit, they'd still be able to get flavors that they find helpful. So it's like, we recognize that some flavors can be appealing to adults as well, and it's not fair to take that away from them. Exactly.

It's about trying to find that balance. Yeah. Make it less appealing to kids without punishing adults who are, you know, trying to do the right thing. Right. And then, of course, there's the whole advertising question.

Oh, yeah. Because that's that's a big part of how these products are marketed, isn't it? It is. And new clause eight, that was pretty radical. It called for a complete ban on all vaping advertising.

Full stop. Wow. So no more billboards. No more online ads. Nothing.

But a lot of people, they raise concerns about that. Yeah. I can imagine. They were saying, well, hang on. If we ban all advertising, how are adult smokers gonna find out about vaping?

Oh, right. You know, how are they gonna learn that it's potentially a less harmful alternative? Yeah. It's like you're cutting off a route to information. Exactly.

Especially if you've got people who are, you know, lifelong smokers. Right. They might not even know that these alternatives exist. Yeah. So it's a bit a catch 22, isn't it?

You wanna protect kids, but you also wanna give adults the information they need. That's right. So some other amendments like amendment 46 and New Claws nine, they tried to address this. Oh, how so? They suggested that you could still have ads for these products, but only in adult only environments.

Oh, I see. So, like, pubs and clubs, places where kids aren't allowed anyway? Exactly. But they also said those ads would have to carry some pretty strong warning. Oh, yeah.

Very clear warnings. Things like strictly for adult smokers or even quoting the chief medical officer. Like, if you don't smoke, don't vape kinda thing. That's right. It's about, you know, trying to target the message.

Get the information to the right people without enticing young people. Right. Right. And, you know, it's interesting because a lot of smokers actually think vaping is just as bad as smoking. They don't realize that, you know, the science is still developing, but it seems to be a less harmful option.

Exactly. So there's definitely a need for education there. Yeah. So I guess the debate is really all about striking that balance. That's it.

Protecting kids while also giving adults the information they need to make informed choices. Exactly. Okay. And were there any any proposals to regulate, like, the actual physical characteristics of vapes, like the size or how much e liquid they could hold? Yeah.

Absolutely. New clause 21 was all about that. It wanted to limit e liquid tanks and pods to a maximum of two milliliters. Mhmm. And, any refill containers, they could only be 10 milliliter max.

So that was specifically targeting those really large capacity vapes. Exactly. You know, the ones that can hold a lot of e liquid and deliver loads and loads of puffs. Right. Trying to prevent people from getting around the disposable vape ban by just using these massive refillable ones.

Exactly. And then New Clause 20 was focused on online businesses. Mhmm. It basically said they'd have to have proper age verification systems in place. So not just relying on people picking a a box to say they're over 18.

Exactly. They need to have a robust system to actually check that the buyer is of legal age. Okay. So that's all about tobacco and vaping. But the bill also included a whole bunch of other things, didn't it?

Oh, yeah. It was pretty comprehensive. Broader public health measures, stuff like that? Yeah. Things like licensing schemes for retailers.

That was a big one. Oh, right. In clause 18 and amendment 89, they were all about that. So instead of just anyone being able to sell these products, you'd have to get a special license. Exactly.

And the idea was that, you know, before they actually introduced this licensing scheme, they'd consult with all the different people involved. So shops, local authorities, that kind of thing Exactly. To make sure the scheme was actually workable Yeah. And fair to everyone. Right.

And, you know, there's some really good arguments for that. It's about making sure that the people who are actually selling these products are doing it responsibly. Yeah. That makes sense. And what about illegal tobacco and vapes?

Was there anything about trying to crack down on that? Oh, yeah. New clause 19 was all about that. It proposed these annual reports to keep track of illegal sales. Oh, okay.

You know, where are they being sold, how much is being sold, just to keep an eye on the black market. Yeah. To see if it's growing as a result of all these new regulations. Exactly. Yeah.

Because that was a big concern for a lot of people that by making it harder to buy these products legally, you might just push people towards the illegal market. Yeah. So monitoring that is really important. Absolutely. And there was also some discussion about expanding smoke free areas, wasn't there?

Oh, yeah. They were talking about that. The government was, hinting at, extending these zones Mhmm. To places like school grounds, playgrounds, hospitals, places where, you know, children and vulnerable people are. So it's about protecting those who are most at risk.

Exactly. But they weren't talking about extending it to private outdoor spaces like pub gardens. No. That was a specific carve out. They said that wouldn't be on the table, at least not for now.

Okay. And were there any kind of bigger picture public health strategies being discussed alongside all of this? Yeah. Definitely. New class 13, that was really ambitious.

What did that propose? Five year road map, to try and make The UK completely smoke free. Wow. So, like, a long term plan to tackle smoking at every level. Exactly.

And it included specific targets for groups with high smoking rates. You know, pregnant women, people with mental health issues. So a much more targeted approach to try and reach those who are most affected. Yeah. And there was this interesting idea in amendment one about, you know, all the fines they collect from people breaking the new rules.

Mhmm. They should use that money for local public health projects. Oh, that's a good idea. So the money that's generated by enforcing these rules actually goes back into improving public health. Exactly.

It's like a a virtuous circle. And then New Clause four was specifically about nicotine pouches. Alright. They wanted to ban the really high strength ones, the ones with more than twenty milligrams of nicotine. Because those can be really addictive.

Exactly. And they can deliver a really strong hit of nicotine very quickly. Right. Which is especially dangerous for young people who are, you know, more susceptible to addiction. Exactly.

And there was also talk of banning all online sales of tobacco products. Wow. Okay. So it's really about trying to close off every avenue. Yeah.

Make it as difficult as possible for people to get their hands on tobacco. And there is also something about how these products are displayed in shops, wasn't there? Oh, yeah. Amendment 10. That was focused on England specifically.

Okay. It was all about trying to restrict advertising in shops. Yeah. You know, making it harder for kids to see these products. Right.

Because even if they can't buy them, just seeing them everywhere can be a trigger. Exactly. Normalizes it. Yeah. But they also wanted to make sure that adults who do smoke, you know, they still know where to find these products.

So it's about trying to balance, you know, reducing the appeal to young people while still acknowledging the reality that adults do smoke. Exactly. And finally, there's something about a review of the whole act, wasn't there? Oh, yeah. New clause 12 proposed that they should review the whole Tobacco and Vapes Act after five years.

Oh, that's a good idea. Yeah. Just to see how it's working in practice. Mhmm. You know, are the measures effective?

Mhmm. Are there any unintended consequences? Just to make sure it's doing what it's supposed to do. Yeah. You have to keep these things under review, don't you?

Because things change so quickly. Absolutely. Yeah. You know, the whole vaping landscape is constantly evolving, so it's important to be able to adapt the regulations as needed. For sure.

Now one last thing before we wrap up. There was some brief discussion about the implications of this bill for Northern Ireland. Oh, yeah. That's right. And some concerns were raised about potential conflicts with EU law.

Yeah. Specifically around the Windsor framework and some existing EU directives on tobacco. So the argument was that certain parts of the bill might not actually be compatible with EU law. Right. And this was mainly brought up by Jim Allister.

He was pretty vocal about it. But the UK government, they insisted that the bill is perfectly in line with all their legal obligations under the Windsor framework. So a bit of a legal gray area there potentially. Yeah. It'll be interesting to see how that plays out.

Okay. Well, we've covered a lot of ground today. We have. This bill is a real beast. It is.

It really highlights the complexity of trying to balance public health goals with individual freedoms. Absolutely. It's a tight rope walk. Yeah. And, you know, we've seen that there are very strong opinions on all sides.

Yeah. It's definitely a topic that gets people fired up. It does. And rightly so, I think. These are important issues.

Absolutely. Well, we'll be following the progress of this bill very closely. Yeah. It'll be interesting to see what happens next. And in the meantime, please subscribe to the bench report.

Find us on social media at bench report UK. Take care. And while you're mulling all of this over, we'd love for you to consider what's the most effective and ethically sound way to tackle smoking and protect those future generations. It's a tough question with no easy answers. But it's one worth thinking about.