The British Thoracic Society (BTS) welcomes the Government’s decision to proceed with a ban on the sale of disposable vapes in England from 1 June 2025. This follows confirmation earlier this week that single use vapes will be banned in both Scotland and Wales in 2025.
BTS recently published a Position Statement on Tobacco and Vaping that builds on the previous Tobacco and Smoking Statement published in 2021. In this updated Statement, BTS furthers its position to support action towards achieving a smoke-free and vape-free society. It focuses particularly on young people, stating that neither tobacco nor vapes should be used by, or marketed to, anyone under the age of 18.
The statement does acknowledge that smokers who use regulated vapes as a tool to quit smoking should be supported to end their use of reusable vapes at the appropriate time and ultimately to stop vaping.
At least 1.3 million disposable vapes are discarded every week in the UK, as recognised in the 2024 Position Statement on Sustainability and the Environment published by BTS earlier this year. This ban is therefore felt to be further beneficial in helping to reduce this burden on the environment, protecting the wider health of the UK moving forward.
Professor Andres Floto, Honorary Secretary of BTS, said,
“BTS supports any legislation that will reduce (and eventually prevent) the sale and marketing of vapes to young people and individuals who have never smoked. BTS will continue to advocate that only air that should be in the lungs is clean air.”
BTS resources aimed at helping health professionals working to treat tobacco dependence can be found on the Respiratory Futures website here.