The Independent British Vape Trade Association (IBVTA) has warned that the government's latest proposals to tighten controls on vaping products risk undermining efforts to help smokers quit, as ministers launched a consultation on sweeping new restrictions covering packaging, product design and in-store displays.
Responding to the consultation published on Thursday (10 July), IBVTA chief executive Gillian Golden said the industry supports measures to make vaping less appealing and accessible to children, but cautioned against "regulatory overkill" that could weaken vaping's role as the UK's leading smoking cessation aid.
The 12-week consultation, which closes on 2 October, proposes introducing standardised white packaging with tightly controlled branding for vapes, restricting flavour descriptions, limiting device colours and screen functions, and requiring vaping and other nicotine products to be kept out of sight behind shop counters, mirroring existing tobacco display rules.
It also forms part of a broader crackdown that includes tougher enforcement powers against retailers selling to under-18s, stricter advertising restrictions, a new vape excise duty and plans for a retailer licensing scheme aimed at tackling rogue operators and the illicit trade.
Reacting to the consultation poprosals, Gillian Golden, IBVTA CEO said: “The IBVTA looks forward to working positively and progressively with the Government to ensure that vaping becomes less accessible and desirable to children, and to adults that would not otherwise be smoking. However, this can only be considered successful in the context of continuing the decline in adult smoking rates that has accompanied the growth of the UK’s responsible vape sector.
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill is just one legislative avenue the Government is pursuing to stamp out youth access and tackle the illicit trade. There is a real danger that ‘regulatory overkill’ will hamper the future of vaping as the UK’s leading quit aid for adults.
If vapes were banned from display in the same way as tobacco products, this risks the Government’s goal of the UK becoming smoke free by 2030 and could potentially kill off the responsible dedicated vape shops already struggling to compete with the illicit trade.
Even worse, these proposals may contribute to continued misperceptions about the harm of vaping relative to tobacco smoking. New ASH data has found that only 6% of GB adults can accurately reflect that vaping is a lot less harmful than smoking. It is difficult to see how these proposals would counter those misperceptions.”