Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the impact on public health of second-hand vapour from e-cigarettes in public spaces.

The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, previously Public Health England (PHE), has published detailed evidence updates on vapes (e-cigarettes) since 2014.

The last report, published in 2022, assesses the impact on public health of second-hand vapour from e-cigarettes in public spaces. This can be seen in Chapter 7 ‘Biomarkers of Secondhand exposure’. The full report is available at the following link:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1107701/Nicotine-vaping-in-England-2022-report.pdf

In summary, there is limited published evidence of harm to bystanders from exposure to e-cigarette vapour and the available evidence indicates that any risk of harm is extremely low, especially when compared with tobacco smoke. PHE also published advice on the use of vapes in public places and workplaces in 2016 which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/use-of-e-cigarettes-in-public-places-and-workplaces