Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of increased use of e-cigarettes on young people in Fylde constituency.

The health advice is clear, that while vapes are less harmful than smoking and can be an effective quit aid for smokers, children and non-smokers should never vape. The main established health risk associated with vaping is from nicotine, which can cause addiction. Children and young people are particularly susceptible to the addictive nature of nicotine as their lungs and brains are still developing.

This is why the Tobacco and Vapes Bill will ban vapes and nicotine products from being deliberately promoted and advertised to children to stop the next generation from becoming hooked on nicotine. The bill, currently going through Parliament, includes a range of measures to tackle youth vaping, which will benefit the young people of Fylde. In addition, the disposable vapes ban came into effect on 1 June, making the sale and supply of single use vapes illegal. This ban protects the environment and removes products from the market that particularly appeal to children.

We are also committed to funding research in this area to inform policy across the United Kingdom. Earlier this year, we announced a £62 million research project into adolescent health, funded by UK Research and Innovation, that will investigate the long-term health effects of vaping on young people’s health and wellbeing. We have also commissioned, via the National Institute for Health and Care Research, the most comprehensive analysis of youth vaping studies ever conducted in this area, which is due to be published later this year.