Britain is to enforce its ban on disposable vapes next year, with new laws giving suppliers a deadline of 1 June 2025 to dump all stock across England, and Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland expected to follow suit.
The prohibition comes amid concerns that children are illegally buying the devices, with the number of youngsters vaping having tripled in the past three years, 9% of them aged 11 to 15, reports The Independent.
There has been a 50% rise in the past year in Britain in the proportion of children vaping, according to research by charity Action on Smoking and Health (Ash).
Their study found a rise in experimental vaping among 11 to 17-year-olds, from 7.7% in 2022 to 11.6% in 2023.
The government believes the ban would also help curb the negative environmental impact of disposable e-cigarette waste.
Last year, environmental campaign group Material Focus found that more than 7m single-use vapes are bought every week in the UK, double the amount bought in 2022.
A total of 73% of the vapers said they throw away single-use vapes, with 33% of 16 to 18-year-old vapers admitting to tossing their vapes in a bin at their school or work.
Material Focus said that 5m vapes disposed of weekly is equivalent to eight per second, a sharp rise from the 1.3m thrown away in 2022.
The move comes amid a raft of measures planned by the government to clamp down on Britain’s smoking habits.
In August, it announced consideration of a potential outdoor smoking ban in an effort to curb preventable deaths and alleviate pressures on the NHS.
Its indoor smoking ban could be extended to cover other locations including small parks, outdoor restaurants and hospitals, it said.
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