The government must ban the manufacture and sale of all disposable vapes due to their harmful impact on children, young people and the environment, the BMA has said.
In a report called Taking our breath away: why we need stronger regulation of vapes, the BMA made six recommendations to stop a ‘growing epidemic of vape use’ in the UK. These include banning the commercial sale of disposable vapes, banning non-tobacco flavoured vapes and restrictions around colour and imagery on the devices (see box for full details).
It said that while the previous government had introduced a Tobacco and Vapes Bill which would have regulated the sale of vapes, that this was not carried forward into the new parliamentary session.
The Labour government has re-introduced a bill to tackle smoking and youth vaping, set out in the King’s Speech, however there are no details yet in terms of what measures this will include.
The BMA’s report said there were many unknowns about vaping, including how they affect physical health, and that more data was needed in particular on cardiovascular disease and long term impact on lungs, hearts and brains.
It said: ‘Until we have that information, we must ensure the public, particularly children and young people, are properly protected from the impact of the inappropriate use of vapes. Therefore, tighter regulations must be in place to reduce vape appeal, visibility, accessibility and availability, along with efforts to increase awareness of the dangers these products pose.’
It added: ‘The fact that UK Government has recognised this issue and plans to implement legislation to address it, is very welcome. However, it is crucial that any proposed regulations are based on robust evidence, ensuring they are effective as possible, and implemented without delay.’
The BMA report recommendations:
Recommendation 1 – Ban the manufacture for commercial sale, and the commercial sale of all disposable vapes, on the grounds of disproportionate and harmful use by children and young people and their adverse impact on the environment.
Recommendation 2 – Ban all non-tobacco vape flavours.
Recommendation 3 – Prohibit the use of all imagery, colouring and branding for both the packaging and vape device.
Recommendation 4 – Reduce visibility of vapes through further restrictions on all advertising and marketing; and ensure vapes are kept behind the counter and not on display in shops and retail outlets.
Recommendation 5 – Tackle the illegal sales of vapes by accompanying tighter regulations with:
- a) The requirement for manufacturers to provide clear product information.
- b) Government funded and delivered education campaigns:
– for retailers on products, details of regulation and consequences of
non-compliance
– for the public on the dangers of vapes to reduce appeal
- c) Increased and adequate resources, funding and powers for regulating bodies such as Trading Standards and Border Force to enable regular and consistent monitoring and enforcement.
- d) An increase of the fines and sanctions that regulatory bodies can issue.
Recommendation 6 – Implement tighter regulation and restrictions for related nicotine products, such as nicotine pouches to prevent their availability and marketing towards children and young people. This should include age of sale restrictions, plain packaging, clear product contents information and restricted point of sale displays.
Professor David Strain, chair of the BMA’s board of science, said: ‘There is no denying we are living in a vaping epidemic. Vape usage has risen hugely in the last decade, with one in 10 ten adults now vaping.
‘However, far more worrying, is the increase in young people who vape, with almost six times more 11–17-year-olds vaping now compared with ten years ago.
‘As a doctor, I understand the role vapes can play in helping people to stop smoking, but they have no rightful place in our children and young people’s lives and when it comes to protecting their health, we cannot afford to gamble.’
He added that the industry was ‘so obviously targeting children’ with colours, flavours and branding and that ‘potential future harms cannot be allowed to happen any longer’.
Dr Penelope Toff, chair of the BMA’s public health medicine committee, said: ‘The last Government made significant progress putting forward a bill that included a ban on disposable vapes, and plans to regulate flavours and marketing. This new Government must now ensure these measures are carried through into legislation – and it would do well to go even further.
‘We are calling on ministers to take bold and brave actions that will make a real difference, like banning all vape flavours other than tobacco, so that the grip these products have on our children and young people is released, while still ensuring they remain an option to help some people stop smoking.’
