Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department plans to decide on the UK’s position on vaping for the Europe Preparatory Meeting for the Tenth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in Turkey from 9 October 2023; and if he will make a statement.

The WHO European Region preparatory meetings for the tenth session of the Conference of the Parties of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control will take place virtually from 3 October to 4 October 2023.

Members of the tobacco control team in the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities will represent the United Kingdom at the preparatory meetings. It is Departmental policy not to name officials below Senior Civil Service grades who attend these events.

The Government has regularly set out its position on vaping at the Conference of the Parties of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and we will do so at the next conference in November 2023 along with the preparatory meeting in October. The delegation will not agree to any decisions which would impact on our ability to make vapes available for adult smokers who wish to quit.