Tobacco and Vapes Bill

Baroness Smith of Llanfaes Excerpts

2nd reading
Wednesday 23rd April 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Smith of Llanfaes (PC)]

My Lords, in the lead-up to today’s Second Reading, I was contacted by several people from Llanfaes, the community where I grew up, who expressed just how important the Bill is to them. One voice in particular stood out—Sylvia Evans’. Sylvia underwent a laryngectomy 26 years ago, after developing cancer of the voice box caused by smoking. At the time, her diagnosis was rare, but today she told me that three others in her local area have received the same operation. If current trends persist, around 350 new cancer cases caused by smoking are expected in Ynys Môn over the next five years. Across Wales, that figure could exceed 15,000 people. That is the reality of inaction.

Smoking remains the leading cause of cancer in the UK. According to Cancer Research UK, more than 40,000 cases have been attributed to smoking since the last general election alone. That is a staggering number, and it is preventable. The Bill offers a historic opportunity to protect future generations from the harms of smoking and sends a clear message: we can and must act now to break this cycle.

A Race for Life volunteer, Trefor Hughes-Morris, recently reached out to me regarding the Bill. He often asks the thousands of participants at his events to raise their hand if they or someone they know has been affected by cancer. He told me that every hand goes up. That is the scale of the challenge and the urgency.

Smoking rates do not fall on their own; they fall when the Government lead. The Bill represents the most significant opportunity in over a decade to prevent cancer before it starts. It secured cross-party support in the other place. Of course, there are concerns, including from Trading Standards Wales, about how realistic it is to believe that people born before January 2009 will be challenged about their age in the future when they are decades older, and about the lack of a strategy for dealing with the legislation’s impact on the illegal tobacco and vapes market. Indeed, this legislation must draw a clear distinction between legal and illegal vapes, which are already posing problems.

When used responsibly, as we have heard, legal vapes can be a powerful tool to help people quit smoking. According to Action on Smoking and Health, over half of those who quit smoking in the last five years used a vape to do so. ASH Wales actively encourages smokers to switch to vaping, based on

“the most up-to-date evidence”.

That said, we urgently need more research into the long-term effects of vaping to better inform regulation as the industry evolves. In the meantime, the lack of clear standards has allowed illegal and non-compliant products to proliferate. Some contain illegally high levels of nicotine or e-liquid, and even dangerous substances such as mercury and lead.

According to Trading Standards, already one in three disposable vapes sold is illegal. This matters because the bright colours and flashy branding of disposable vapes are attracting children and young people. In Wales, 24% of pupils in years 7 to 11 have vaped. Of those who vape regularly, 92% use products containing nicotine. Nearly half report being unable to get through a school day without vaping, impacting on their focus and education. Better regulation of the vape industry is not optional, it is essential.

In the Senedd, Plaid Cymru has long advocated a national mandatory register of all retailers selling tobacco and nicotine products in Wales. This would ensure that only compliant businesses operate and allow for enforcement action against those that break the rules. This proposal is backed by Public Health Wales’s youth vaping response group, which includes leading health charities, trading standards officials and medical professionals. We have also called for and supported Senedd legislation to ban the sale of disposable vapes, which will curb the rise in youth vaping and tackle their detrimental environmental impact.

In conclusion, I support effective, forward-looking legislation that protects people and encourages collaboration across all four nations of the UK. The biggest cause of cancer has no place in our future. While we will work through some concerns in Committee, I urge Members across your Lordships’ House to support the Bill.