Selling vapes to children deserves harsher punishments: survey

The government must introduce tougher punishments on retailers in order to tackle underage vaping and curb illicit vape sales, according to a new study of almost 6,000 members of the public.

More than half of those polled dismissed the government’s plans to introduce £200 on-the-spot fines for shopkeepers caught illegally selling vapes to children as too lenient, with almost two thirds saying the fine is too low. When given a list of different options on the amount shopkeepers should be fined if caught, the highest level of support amongst respondents was for fines of up to £1,000 (30 per cent).

BAT UK, the UK’s largest vaping manufacturer, commissioned the survey from independent research group Britain in Focus, in response to the government’s proposed measures in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill.

BAT UK said it has consistently called for tighter regulation of the UK vape market including the introduction of a retail license scheme, as was proposed recently by the government. Once brought in, this means vapes can only be sold by someone with a licence. However, the government has yet to confirm when this scheme will be brought into force and what the punishments will be for those retailers who repeatedly breach their licence.

Only one per cent of those polled are content to wait longer than two years for the scheme to be introduced, with a majority (52 per cent) of the public wanting the licence brought in within the next three months.

Support for strict punishments was also very high, with 67 per cent in favour of retailers losing their licence permanently if they are caught breaching it three times. In comparison, just 22 per cent of respondents supported a temporary licence suspension on this basis, whilst two per cent thought there should be no change to a retailer’s licence if they break the law.

BAT UK said it shares the UK’s ambition to be smoke-free by 2030 and recognises the important role vaping products will play in achieving this.

“The results speak for themselves,” said Asli Ertonguc, head of BAT UK & Western Europe, said. “The public clearly do not feel the punishments in the current proposals are tough enough to protect the underage. We need to have an open conversation about appropriate regulation and enforcement while keeping vapes as a vital tool for adults to help the UK reach its smoke-free 2030 goal.

“A retail licensing system is a step in the right direction. However, without increased fines and stricter punishments, unethical retailers will simply continue to break the law. For a vape license to be effective, retailers must know that if they abuse it, they lose it.

“With the Tobacco and Vapes Bill still progressing through the parliament, the government must act fast. The new laws clearly need tougher sanctions to give it the teeth to punish those who sell to children or stock illegal vapes. Without such enforcement, the Bill will fail to achieve its desired impact.”