Tobacco and Vapes Bill 2024-25

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill 2024-25 (HC Bill 121) had its first reading on 5 November 2024, in the House of Commons. The bill’s second reading will take place on Tuesday 26 November 2024.

The bill aims to create the first “smoke-free generation” by ensuring children turning 15 this year or younger can never be legally sold tobacco.

The bill includes other provisions which focus on making vaping less attractive and accessible to children and young people, strengthening smoke-free restrictions, and strengthening enforcement around the sale of tobacco and vaping products.

The government has called the bill the “biggest public health intervention in a generation”.

Provisions in this bill are similar to those proposed in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill 2023-24. The Conservative government introduced the previous bill in April 2024. It did not complete its parliamentary stages prior to the general election, and consequently fell when Parliament was dissolved.

What would the bill change? Ensuring a consistent legislative approach across the UK

The bill would ensure that a consistent approach to tobacco and vaping regulation was applied across the UK. It would do this primarily by amending existing tobacco and vaping legislation that has been implemented at a national level in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The bill would also consolidate existing tobacco and vaping control measures to provide a consistent legislative framework and strengthen enforcement.

Tobacco

In relation to tobacco products, the bill would:

• introduce a generational ban on the sale of tobacco across the UK:
  • The bill would make it an offence to sell tobacco products, herbal smoking products and cigarette papers to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009. This would replace the current age of sale restriction of 18 years for these products.
• strengthen and expand smoke-free legislation across the UK:
  • The bill provides regulation-making powers that would enable the government to extend smoke-free restrictions to a wider range of premises (such as outside schools and hospitals). This would apply to England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Welsh Government already has powers to do this.
  • The bill provides regulation-making powers that would enable the four UK governments to designate places as being heated tobacco-free places, but only where they are already designated as smoke-free places.
• introduce new restrictions on oral tobacco products across the UK:
  • The bill would make it an offence to possess an oral tobacco product (such as snus) with the intent to supply it in the course of business.
• provide the Secretary of State with powers to make regulations about tobacco products that would apply across the UK:
  • The regulations would apply to tobacco products, tobacco-related devices, herbal smoking products, cigarette papers, vaping products and nicotine products.
  • The regulations could establish requirements for product substances and flavours.
  • The regulations could require producers or importers to provide information and facilitate studies, product safety and testing in relation to the products.

Vaping and nicotine products

In relation to vaping and nicotine products, the bill would::

• extend the existing age of sale restriction, so that it covered non-nicotine vapes and a wider range of vaping products:
  • In England and Wales, the bill would widen the scope of nicotine and vaping products that are subject to an age of sale restriction (18 years). For the first time, it would be an offence to sell non-nicotine vapes, e-liquids and refills to under 18s. There is an existing ban on the sale of nicotine vapes to under 18s.
  • In Northern Ireland, the bill would widen the scope of nicotine products that are subject to an age of sale restriction (18 years). For the first time, it would be an offence to sell non-nicotine vapes, e-liquids and refills to under 18s. It is already an offence to sell nicotine vapes to under 18s.
  • In Scotland, it is already an offence to sell non-nicotine vapes to a person under 18.
• prohibit the sale of vaping and nicotine products from vending machines in the UK.
• prohibit the free distribution, advertising, sponsorship and brandsharing of vaping and nicotine products to people of all ages.
• extend ‘smoke-free’ restrictions to vaping:
  • The bill would provide regulation-making powers enabling the devolved administrations to designate places as being vape-free places, but only where they are already designated as smoke-free places.
• provide the Secretary of State with regulation-making powers to regulate vaping and nicotine products, including contents and flavour, packaging, and product requirements. These regulations would apply across the UK.

Enforcement and retailer licensing

In relation to enforcement and retailer licensing, the bill would introduce:

• the provision of regulation-making powers to create a retailer licensing scheme for the sale of tobacco products, herbal smoking products, cigarette papers, vaping and nicotine products.
• in Scotland, a strengthening of the existing retail register by expanding its scope to herbal smoking products and nicotine products.
• in England and Wales, the provision of enforcement authorities with the power to issue fixed penalty notices for offences related to the underage sale, proxy sale and free distribution of tobacco and vaping products (£200) and offences in connection with licensing (£2,500).

Advertising and sponsorship

In relation to advertising and sponsorship, the bill would:

• introduce a UK-wide ban on the advertising, brandsharing and sponsorship of herbal smoking products, cigarette papers, vaping and nicotine products.
  • The advertising prohibitions would cover the publishing, designing, printing and distributing of an advert or causing the publication, designing, printing or distribution, of an advert including online.
  • A statutory defence for a person charged with an advertising or sponsorship offence would be made available.
  • Specialist tobacconists (a term strictly defined in the bill) would be excluded from liability for offences in relation to an advertisement whose purpose or effect is to promote a tobacco product.

• extend provisions of the Communications Act 2003 about audiovisual and radio broadcasting to all herbal smoking products, cigarette papers, vaping and nicotine products.
• make a “relevant person” (such as a director or manager of a company or a partner in a firm) potentially liable for an advertising or sponsorship offence committed by a “body” (such as a body corporate, a partnership, or an unincorporated association). It would be necessary to show that the offence was committed with their consent, connivance, or neglect.
• impose a duty on relevant enforcement authorities to enforce the provisions in part 6 of the bill and regulations made under powers in part 6.
• empower the appropriate national authority to take over enforcement functions or proceedings instead of the relevant local enforcement authority.

Ensuring that future products will be subject to the existing regulatory framework

The bill would enable the UK Government and devolved administrations to expand the extent of provisions in existing legislation and within the bill itself that regulate the sale and distribution of tobacco products.

The devolved administrations would be empowered to bring tobacco products intended to be consumed other than by smoking (such as heated tobacco) into the scope of existing legislation.

The bill would grant the Secretary of State powers to amend the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 (TRPR 2016) so that its provisions could be extended to products it does not currently cover. The TRPR 2016 sets out requirements on the labelling of tobacco products, substances included in tobacco products and vaping products, and restrictions on the advertising of vaping products. The TRPR 2016 applies across the UK.

Further research from the Commons Library

The Library's tobacco and vaping hub includes several briefings on tobacco and vaping policy.