Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government, following the publication of the consultation by the Department of Health and Social Care, Tobacco and vapes: packaging, appearance and display, published on 10 July, whether impact assessments of anticipated benefits of the consultation were completed before publication of the consultation.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government published consultation-stage impact assessments covering the potential health benefits, reduced health and social care costs, and other potential impacts from reduced use of products in scope. We will continue to build the evidence base on the anticipated impact of the changes, including through information provided in response to the consultation, and we will carefully consider all consultation responses before making any final policy decisions. Updated impact assessments will follow in due course.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government, following the publication of the consultation by the Department of Health and Social Care, Tobacco and vapes: packaging, appearance and display, published on 10 July, why further regulation is deemed necessary before Part 6 of the Tobacco and Vapes Act has been implemented; and what is the effectiveness of the consultation in meeting public health objectives.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Our intention is that the ban on the advertising and sponsorship of vapes and nicotine products will come into force on 1 June 2027. As per the requirements of the Act, regulations are required to implement this ban on this date. This includes necessary consequential amendments made to other pieces of primary legislation, such as the Communications Act. These are not subject to consultation.

The consultation on packaging, display, device appearance and flavour descriptors that was published on 10 July 2026 covers different regulation-making powers under the Act and is a distinct exercise from the implementation of Part 6.

These measures will help tackle youth vaping and protect children from the risk of harm and addiction.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what evidence from other countries, if any, they have considered when evaluating the effect of standardised packaging requirements for heated tobacco products on rates of youth uptake.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

On 10 July 2026, the Government launched a United Kingdom-wide consultation on proposals to reduce the appeal and availability of tobacco, vaping and nicotine products, particularly to children and young people. The consultation includes proposals for plain, white packaging for vaping and nicotine products, aligning existing tobacco display restrictions across relevant products, restricting the appearance of vaping and heated tobacco devices, and extending existing tobacco packaging requirements to other tobacco products and tobacco-related devices. The Government will carefully consider all consultation responses before making any final policy decisions.

Internationally, some countries have introduced packaging requirements for vapes and/or nicotine pouches, including Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, and Israel. As these policies have only recently been implemented, there is currently limited evidence on their evaluation. However, research by University College London and Kings College London has found, for example, that plain vape packaging reduced the appeal of vapes to young people without putting off adults who smoke. The proportion of young people who thought their friends would want to try a vape fell from approximately half, or 53%, with branded packaging to about a third, or 38%, with plain packaging, and to around a quarter, or 27%, when flavour descriptions were also limited.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what evidence from other countries, if any, they have considered when evaluating the effect of standardised packaging requirements for vape products on rates of youth uptake.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

On 10 July 2026, the Government launched a United Kingdom-wide consultation on proposals to reduce the appeal and availability of tobacco, vaping and nicotine products, particularly to children and young people. The consultation includes proposals for plain, white packaging for vaping and nicotine products, aligning existing tobacco display restrictions across relevant products, restricting the appearance of vaping and heated tobacco devices, and extending existing tobacco packaging requirements to other tobacco products and tobacco-related devices. The Government will carefully consider all consultation responses before making any final policy decisions.

Internationally, some countries have introduced packaging requirements for vapes and/or nicotine pouches, including Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, and Israel. As these policies have only recently been implemented, there is currently limited evidence on their evaluation. However, research by University College London and Kings College London has found, for example, that plain vape packaging reduced the appeal of vapes to young people without putting off adults who smoke. The proportion of young people who thought their friends would want to try a vape fell from approximately half, or 53%, with branded packaging to about a third, or 38%, with plain packaging, and to around a quarter, or 27%, when flavour descriptions were also limited.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what evidence from other countries, if any, they have considered when evaluating the effect of standardised packaging requirements for nicotine pouches on rates of youth uptake.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

On 10 July 2026, the Government launched a United Kingdom-wide consultation on proposals to reduce the appeal and availability of tobacco, vaping and nicotine products, particularly to children and young people. The consultation includes proposals for plain, white packaging for vaping and nicotine products, aligning existing tobacco display restrictions across relevant products, restricting the appearance of vaping and heated tobacco devices, and extending existing tobacco packaging requirements to other tobacco products and tobacco-related devices. The Government will carefully consider all consultation responses before making any final policy decisions.

Internationally, some countries have introduced packaging requirements for vapes and/or nicotine pouches, including Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, and Israel. As these policies have only recently been implemented, there is currently limited evidence on their evaluation. However, research by University College London and Kings College London has found, for example, that plain vape packaging reduced the appeal of vapes to young people without putting off adults who smoke. The proportion of young people who thought their friends would want to try a vape fell from approximately half, or 53%, with branded packaging to about a third, or 38%, with plain packaging, and to around a quarter, or 27%, when flavour descriptions were also limited.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Department for Transport on 9 July (HC16088), on what basis each of the 12 additional journeys approved from their overseas posting in New Delhi under the qualifying hardship post policy was authorised; and whether each journey was taken by (a) the posted officer only, or (b) accompanying family members.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport follows the hardship policy set by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, including the entitlement to additional journeys, which enables staff and accompanying dependants at qualifying hardship posts to take a break away from local conditions during their posting. New Delhi is a qualifying hardship post under that policy.

Each of the 12 additional journeys referred to in the Answer of 9 July was authorised under the hardship-post entitlement available to staff and eligible accompanying dependants serving at qualifying hardship posts.

Of those 12 journeys, six were undertaken by the posted officer and six were undertaken by their accompanying partner.

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