Tobacco and Vapes Bill

We have previously reported that the Government’s Tobacco and Vapes Bill seeks to make significant changes to the sales regimes surrounding the retail of tobacco, cigarettes and vapes. A primer on the extent of known changes can be found here and will be kept up-to-date as more information comes to light. However, in summary the principal proposals are to: (i) slowly phase out the sale of tobacco products; and (ii) introduce a licensing scheme in England and Wales for selling tobacco, vapes and nicotine products.

In Scotland, the Bill will extend the retail registration scheme but not introduce a licensing scheme as is proposed in England and Wales. The Scottish Green Party has called for the Scottish Government to introduce a vapes licensing system and their statement can be found here.

As it stands, the Bill is still with the House of Commons at its Committee stage (with sittings scheduled for 9^th, 14^th and 16^th January) which will be followed by the Report stage and 3^rd reading before heading to the House of Lords. Whether the Bill will be significantly amended to incorporate any amendments to propose a Scottish vapes licensing scheme remains to be seen.

We will provide regular updates on the passage of the Bill and any material changes to the proposals.