Tobacco: Regulation

(asked on 3rd November 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to ensure that UK regulations for tobacco and related products are not weaker than the EU Tobacco Products Directive.


Answered by
Jo Churchill Portrait
Jo Churchill
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This question was answered on 17th November 2020

Our commitment to tough tobacco control will continue post 1 January 2021, and we laid the Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 on the 28 September 2020 to reaffirm that commitment.

Post-transition period, Great Britain will no longer have to comply with the European Union’s Tobacco Products Directive and there will be opportunity to consider, in the future, regulatory changes that help people quit smoking and address the harms from tobacco. Any changes to do so will be based on robust evidence and in the interests of public health.

The Department will be carrying out a post implementation review of the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 and Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products by 20 May 2021 to see if the regulations have both met their objectives. Part of this review process will involve a public consultation to start before the end of the year for people to submit their views and evidence.

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