Is vaping bad for you, and how are the rules changing?
Why are disposable vapes being banned and how harmful is vaping?
(7 months later)
The government is tightening up the rules about how vapes are marketed and sold, alongside wider plans to tackle health issues caused by smoking.
Disposable vapes have been found to damage the environment
A ban on disposable vapes will also be introduced and a new tax on nicotine vapes put in place.
From Sunday, it will be illegal for businesses to sell or supply disposable vapes.
The government hopes the ban will reduce environmental damage caused by the devices and help cut the number of children and young people vaping.
How are the rules about vapes changing?
How are the rules about vapes changing?
The government's Tobacco and Vapes Bill proposes to outlaw vape advertising and sponsorship, external, and to restrict the flavours, packaging and display of vapes and other nicotine products.
Disposable vapes ban
Outdoor vaping may also be banned in smoke-free places, subject to consultation.
From 1 June 2025, businesses will be banned from selling or supplying any single-use vapes, whether that's in shops or online.
Separately, the government had already announced that disposable vapes will be banned in England, Wales and Scotland from 1 June 2025. Northern Ireland is expected to follow suit.
Retailers caught breaking the law in England face a minimum £200 fine, with a prison sentence of up to two years for repeat offences. Penalties are broadly similar in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The move is designed to protect children and young people's health, and to reduce environmental damage.
Trading Standards will be able to seize any single-use vapes they find.
It covers single-use vapes which cannot be refilled or recharged, external.
Only devices considered to be reusable will be legal. That means that they must have a rechargeable battery, a replaceable coil, and be refillable.
Previous Conservative government plans to limit vaping and smoking had not become law by the time of the July general election, so Labour has brought in its own legislation.
It won't be illegal to own a disposable vape after 1 June. Customers can still return them, and retailers have an obligation to get rid of them.
How will the UK smoking ban work?
Vaping tax
How will the new vaping tax work and when will it start?
Vaping products are already subject to 20% VAT but, unlike tobacco, they do not currently attract a separate additional tax.
Vaping products are already subject to 20% VAT but, unlike tobacco, they do not attract a separate additional tax.
A new vaping duty will start on 1 October 2026. It will be charged at a flat rate of £2.20 per 10ml vaping liquid.
As part of the Autumn Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced that a vaping products duty will start on 1 October 2026.
At the same time, tobacco duty will be increased to preserve the financial incentive for cigarette smokers to switch to vaping.
It will be charged at a flat rate of £2.20 per 10ml vaping liquid.
Advertising and sponsorship ban
At the same time, tobacco duty will be increased to preserve the financial incentive to switch to vaping.
The government's Tobacco and Vapes Bill - which is currently making its way through Parliament - will outlaw vape advertising and sponsorship.
Is vaping bad for your health?
It will also restrict the flavours, packaging and display of vapes and other nicotine products.
Vaping is nowhere near as harmful as smoking cigarettes.
Children have been targeted with colours, branding and flavours such as bubble gum or candy floss, to push a product that can lead to nicotine addiction, the British Medical Association has warned.
However, health experts agree anyone who does not smoke should not start vaping, as it may cause long-term damage to lungs, hearts and brains.
Illegal vapes
The vapour inhaled contains a small amount of chemicals, often including the addictive substance nicotine.
The government is also cracking down on iIlegal vapes, which are widely available and are much more likely to contain other harmful chemicals or drugs.
More research is needed to fully understand their health effects, but in December 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that "alarming evidence" about the risks they pose was growing, external.
More than six million illegal vaping products were seized by Trading Standards officers across England between 2022 and 2024, according to analysis by the BBC.
Illegal vapes are also widely available and are much more likely to contain other harmful chemicals or drugs.
Why is vaping better than smoking?
Cigarettes contain tobacco, tar and a range of other toxic cancer-causing chemicals, and are one of the largest preventable causes of illness and death in the UK, external.
That is why smokers are urged to stop, with nicotine vapes the most effective quit tool - better than nicotine patches or gum., external
Research suggests people using vapes alongside face-to-face support can be up to twice as likely to stop smoking, external than those using other methods.
But because vaping is not harmless, it is only recommended for adult smokers, who are offered free vape kits on the NHS to help them quit as part of its "swap to stop" programme.
The NHS says thousands of people have given up smoking using vaping.
NHS: Vaping myths and facts, external
Jordan North: How safe is vaping for my health?
How many adults use vapes?
As smoking rates have fallen, the use of vapes has risen, with about 5.1 million people using a vape or e-cigarette in 2023.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) says 5.9% of people aged 16 and over vaped every day, up slightly from the previous year, while another 3.9% did so occasionally.
The group with the highest rate of vape use - nearly 16% - was 16-24 year-olds. But the biggest increase in vape use since 2022 was seen among 25-34-year-olds.
The number of people in England who vape despite never having been regular smokers has increased significantly, according to research published in The Lancet.
It found e-cigarette use among this group has increased from one in 200 people in 2021, to one in 28 - just over a million people.
How many children vape?
It is illegal to sell vapes containing nicotine to under-18s, but their use among younger teenagers has grown.
Nearly 8% of 11-17-year-olds vaped in April 2023, according to an online survey of 2,000 children by health charity ASH (Action on Smoking and Health), external. That was up from 4% in 2020.
Vaping is now twice as common as smoking among children.
Why are disposable vapes so bad for the environment?
Why are disposable vapes so bad for the environment?
Almost five million single-use vapes were either littered or added to general waste each week in 2023, according to the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra).
The ban on disposable vapes was introduced to tackle their impact on the environment.
Batteries thrown into household waste cause hundreds of fires in bin lorries and waste-processing centres every year.
Almost five million single-use vapes were thrown away each week in 2023, according to the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra).
As well as lithium-ion batteries, vapes also contain circuit boards which - if not disposed of properly - can leach toxic compounds such as cobalt and copper into the environment as they degrade.
As well as lithium-ion batteries, vapes also contain circuit boards. If these aren't not disposed of properly, they can leak toxic compounds such as cobalt and copper.
These minerals and the lithium could, if recovered, be reused for green technologies such as electric car batteries or in wind turbines, external.
That means fish, and marine mammals could mistake vapes for food and ingest poisonous chemicals.
In 2022, vapes with more than 40 tonnes of lithium in vapes were discarded, enough to power 5,000 electric vehicles.
The Local Government Association (LGA), also says that single-use vapes are "a hazard for waste and litter collection and cause fires in bin lorries".
However, recycling vapes is not straightforward because of their size and the way they are manufactured, which makes them difficult to take apart.
However, recycling disposable vapes is not straightforward because of their size and the way they are manufactured, which makes them difficult to take apart.
There is currently no large-scale disposable vape recycling in the UK, external. There are so many different types of vape on the market that it is difficult to develop a standard recycling process.
These minerals and the lithium could - if recovered - be reused for green technologies such as electric car batteries or in wind turbines.
Research published in 2023 suggested only 17% of users recycled disposable vapes.
There is currently no large-scale disposable vape recycling in the UK. There are so many different types of vape on the market that it is difficult to develop a standard recycling process.
What are the vaping rules in other countries?
How many children and adults vape?
The US has prohibited some vape flavours like mint and fruit in particular e-cigarettes.
Around 18% of 11 to 17-year-olds (980,000 children) have tried vaping, external, according to a 2024 survey by health charity ASH (Action on Smoking and Health).
However, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has reversed the 2022 ban on products sold by Juul, one of the country's biggest e-cigarette companies. It said a full review of Juul's products was pending.
About 7% (390,000 children) said they currently vaped, down from 8% in 2023, but still well above the 4% figure recorded in 2020.
The company previously settled more than 5,000 US vaping legal actions, after being accused of targeting teenagers.
In contrast, just over 5% of 11 to 17-year-olds (280,000 children) said they currently smoked, while just under 3% (150,000 children) said they both smoked and vaped.
In Australia e-cigarettes containing nicotine are generally available on prescription only,, external for smokers who want to give up tobacco. And pharmacies do not sell disposable vapes.
Among all age groups over 16, the use of vapes has risen, with about 5.1 million people using a vape or e-cigarette in 2023.
New Zealand brought in new rules in 2023, banning most disposable vapes and targeting flavours which appeal to children.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) says 5.9% of people aged 16 and over vaped every day, up slightly from the previous year, while another 3.9% did so occasionally.
Countries including South Korea, India and Brazil have also brought in very strict vape rules, while China has announced restrictions.
The group with the highest rate of vape use - nearly 16% - was 16-24 year-olds.
However, 88 countries have no minimum age for buying vapes, and 74 have no laws in place for e-cigarettes, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), external.
The NHS says vaping should only be for adults quitting smoking
How harmful are vapes to children and adults?
Vaping is nowhere near as harmful as smoking cigarettes, which contain tobacco, tar and a range of other toxic cancer-causing chemicals, and is one of the largest preventable causes of illness and death in the UK.
But because vaping may itself cause long-term damage to lungs, hearts and brains, it is only recommended for adult smokers trying to quit as part of the NHS "swap to stop" programme.
The vapour inhaled contains a small amount of chemicals, often including the addictive substance nicotine.
"Vapes can be an effective way for adult smokers to quit - but we have always been clear that children and adult non-smokers should never vape," the Department of Health and Social Care has said.
More research is needed to fully understand the effects of vaping, but in December 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned "alarming evidence" was growing about the damage it causes.
In February 2025, the government said a £62m research project would track 100,000 eight to 18-year-olds for a decade to better understand the risks.
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