Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what concerns they have, if any, regarding the marketing of e-cigarettes and vapes to under-18s.

The Government collects statistics on smoking and vaping for 11 to 15 year olds through the Smoking, Drinking and Drug Use Among Young People survey. Due to the pandemic, the latest data available is from 2018, which shows regular use of vapes for 11 to 15 year olds at 3% and regular use of smoking cigarettes at 2%. Fieldwork for the latest survey is complete and due to published later this year. The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities collects data on vaping among 11 to 18 year olds, which will be published in its 2022 Vaping in England report shortly.

The regulatory framework for vaping aims to maximise the opportunities for adult smokers to convert from cigarettes while preventing non-smokers and young people from starting to smoke. The independent review into tobacco control measures led by Dr Javed Khan supports this approach. However, further measures have been recommended to discourage uptake among young people. We are considering the review’s recommendations and continue to monitor the evidence on use among young people and vaping regulations are kept under review.