ALBAWABA - The government of the United Kingdom has declared that it intends to prohibit the sale of single-use vapes in England and Wales beginning in June of the next year, with Scotland delaying its earlier announced ban to align with them, BBC reports.
Vape use in England has increased by more than 400% between the years 2012 and 2023, according to the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra). Currently, 9% of the general population in the United Kingdom is purchasing and using vape items.
The sale of single-use vapes will be prohibited as part of the British government's efforts to curb the negative impact that vaping has on the environment and the increasing prevalence of vaping among minors.
While it is against the law to offer electronic cigarettes that contain nicotine to anyone who is younger than 18 years old. A poll conducted in 2024 by the health organization ASH found that around one in five youngsters between the ages of 11 and 17 had experimented with vaping.
Over the last several years, there has been a significant rise in the number of individuals who vape without ever having smoked, with young adults being the primary drivers of this upward trend.
The effect that disposable vapes have on the environment has also been a significant factor in the decision to prohibit them. It is estimated by the UK government that approximately 5 million single-use vapes are thrown away on the ground or discarded under general garbage every single week, Reuters reports.
Vapes that contained a total of more than forty tons of lithium were wasted in the year 2022, according to Dafra. This amount of lithium was sufficient to power five thousand electric automobiles.
In addition, the Labour administration intends to impose a complete smoking bill as part of what it has referred to as "the biggest public health intervention in a generation" in order to prevent young people from developing a dependency on nicotine.
Andrew Gwynne, minister for public health and prevention said “Banning disposable vapes will not only protect the environment, but importantly reduce the appeal of vapes to children and keep them out of the hands of vulnerable young people.”
