VPZ has issued a warning to the UK Government regarding the risk of black market growth due to the potential tobacco and vapes bill.
The UK Government-led Bill passed its first Commons hurdle by 415 votes to 47 in November.
MPs will reconvene on 30 January to rubber-stamp Public Bill Committee proposals, which include broad flavour restrictions and the introduction of plain packaging.
The e-cigarette and vape retailer claims the plans have been rushed through without any industry consultation and expresses concern that they will compel individuals to return to smoking.
They do support the measures outlined in the Bill to address youth vaping, including restrictions on naming, packaging, and marketing.
However, it emphasises that flavours are crucial for smoking cessation, and restricting them risks harming adult vapers, driving a return to smoking, and undermining the UK’s 2030 smoke-free goals.
The retailer also points to the surge in the Australian black market after laws were introduced in October last year where only pharmacies are allowed to sell vapes, with flavours restricted to menthol, mint or tobacco.
Greig Fowler, director at VPZ, said: “Restricting vape flavours risks compromising the most effective cessation tool, pushing people back to smoking or unregulated black-market products.
“It’s vital to take an evidence-based approach, aligning public health goals with practical measures that recognise vaping as a proven harm reduction tool that saves lives.”
“We fully welcome any measures and have campaigned heavily to introduce policy that will tackle youth access – however the plans within the Bill will ultimately fail and damage our smoke free ambitions.
“Studies show that flavoured vapes have been instrumental in helping smokers transition away from traditional tobacco products.
“Further research from Public Health England also found that over 80 per cent of adult vapers prefer flavoured options to reduce cigarette cravings and avoid relapse.
“This undeniable evidence shows that reducing flavour options has the potential to push adults back to smoking, reversing the huge progress we have made in the government’s smoke-free goals and raising healthcare costs for smoking-related illnesses.
“Restricting flavoured vape products also risks the growth of an unregulated and illegal black market which poses significant health and social dangers.”
VPZ has also written to all MPs across its network and begun a programme of local store-led engagement to highlight concerns and make recommendations, including a licensing and controls regime, age verification laws, tackling the illicit black market, and public education on vaping versus smoking.
The latest data from Local Data Company (LDC) shows that at the end of 2024, there were 3,573 vape specialist stores nationwide.
According to Statista, in 2023, approximately 50,000 other outlets sold vape products through various channels, including supermarkets, candy stores, toy shops, barbers, and butchers. However, that figure was feared to be considerably higher last year.
Greig Fowler continued: “We have campaigned for over three years for a licensing and controls regime and have pioneered a check 25 policy to ensure that vaping products are targeted towards adult smokers and vapers.
“Access remains the overriding challenge, and we need to strengthen penalties for retailers who sell to minors rather than restricting products for adults who rely on flavours for smoking cessation.
“It’s vital that we improve enforcement to curb the sale of illegal, unregulated vape products that pose health risks and avoid taxes. A current example is the illegal ‘Big Puff’ devices that are flooding the market and creating an even bigger and more damaging single-use product ahead of the disposables ban.
“Furthermore, we believe that there must be an investment in public education to highlight the benefits of vaping over smoking to ensure that it meets its potential as the most effective stop smoking tool.”
The company also aimed to advise policymakers on the rise of “big puff” disposable vapes, which threaten to bring a new youth vaping epidemic and even more significant damage to the environment.
The imported products exploit a regulatory loophole to create a new single-use vaping product ahead of the disposable vape ban, which will come into force in June 2025.
