Think for a moment about your child’s future. Not next week or next year, but the decades stretching ahead of them. The life they have yet to live. Now imagine those years shaped by a harmful addiction they never truly chose, costing them money and health, and ultimately cutting their life short through entirely preventable illness. That is the reality facing too many young people today, and it is one the government is determined to change.
Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death in the UK, claiming around 80,000 lives every year. Up to two‑thirds of deaths in smokers are caused by smoking itself and most smokers wish they had never started, with over half saying they want to quit. Yet for generations, the tobacco industry has deliberately hooked children on nicotine before they are old enough to fully understand the consequences. In England alone, 11 per cent of 11 to 15 year‑olds have already tried smoking.
Now add vaping into the picture.
Smoking is a known enemy, but vaping is an emerging one. Vapes are less harmful than tobacco and can help adult smokers quit, and that role must be protected. But in recent years we have seen something far more troubling: vapes marketed to children, sold cheaply, packaged brightly and flavoured like sweets, placed on counters purposely right next to the sweets in corner shops. It's no wonder youth vaping has more than doubled in England between 2018 and 2023. While the long‑term effects are still unclear, we know nicotine is highly addictive, particularly for children and young people.
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill is the government’s response. At its heart is a simple but historic commitment: anyone born on or after 1 January 2009 will never legally be sold tobacco. Over time, this will break the cycle of addiction for good.
As part of the Bill, single‑use vapes, which are most popular among young people, are already banned. From October this year, a new tax on vaping products will follow, with a clear aim: to reduce uptake among non‑smokers, especially children and teenagers.
The Bill also tackles how vapes are marketed. It will end vape advertising and sponsorship, and gives powers to restrict flavours, packaging and where products are displayed. Retailers who sell to under‑18s will face on‑the‑spot fines, and a new licensing scheme will ensure only responsible retailers can sell tobacco, vapes and nicotine products.
As parents, we want our children to be healthy, happy and free. This legislation ensures the next generation never faces the misery of tobacco addiction, never spends thousands on cigarettes they wish they had never started, and never looks back and asks why nobody acted sooner.