Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there has been any assessment made of the health hazards from illicit tobacco products compared with those that are legally produced; and if so, what future impact such hazards are likely to have on the health of smokers under 25 years old.

There are no separate assessments made by the Government on the health hazards of illicit tobacco as all tobacco products are harmful. Considerable progress has been made in addressing tobacco smuggling and the reductions we have seen have been achieved through regulatory changes, new sanctions, detection technology and partnership working across government and internationally. The Tobacco Control Plan for England, published in July 2017, set out the continued government commitment to tackle illicit tobacco, including the United Kingdom international obligation to ratify the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Protocol on Illicit Tobacco as soon as the required legislation has been approved by Parliament.