MPs vote overwhelmingly to ban disposable vapes

MPs person voted successful favour of banning disposable vapes arsenic portion of a landmark portion of authorities aimed astatine clamping down connected younker vaping.

The bill, described by health caput Wes Streeting arsenic an ‘urgent intervention’ to assistance children ‘avoid a beingness imprisoned by addiction’ passed its 2nd speechmaking contiguous by a borderline of 415 ayes to 47 noes aft gaining important cross-party support.

Among the measures introduced by the measure see restrictions connected vape packaging, a prohibition connected the merchantability of vape flavours which ‘overtly appeal’ to children, specified arsenic fabric candy, and extending the indoor smoking prohibition to outdoor spaces.

The measurement was archetypal introduced by Rishi Sunak’s Tory government successful January 2024, and was picked up by Labour aft they assumed bureau successful July.

New Conservative enactment person Kemi Badenoch was among the 47 nary votes, joined by erstwhile location caput Suella Braverman and 33 different Tories.

Seven Liberal Democrats and each 4 Reform UK MPs besides voted against the measure astatine its 2nd reading.

Opening the Tobacco and Vapes Bill’s 2nd reading, Mr Streeting told the Commons: ‘The measure earlier the House contiguous volition rise the ineligible property of merchantability of baccy by 1 twelvemonth each year, creating the archetypal smoke-free procreation and yet a smoke-free nation.

‘The measure volition alteration the authorities to widen the existent indoor smoking prohibition to definite outdoor settings, and we volition consult connected banning smoking extracurricular schools, hospitals and successful playgrounds, protecting children and susceptible radical from the harms of second-hand smoke.

‘And this measure volition travel down connected the vaping manufacture similar a ton of bricks to forestall a caller procreation of children and young radical from getting hooked connected nicotine.’

Intervening, Conservative MP Andrew Rosindell (Romford) argued that ‘banning things precise seldom works’, adding: ‘Surely we should beryllium promoting the conception of state with work and allowing radical to marque choices astir their ain lives?’

Mr Streeting said baccy is ‘uniquely addictive, uniquely harmful’, adding: ‘There is nary liberty successful addiction. There is nary state successful addiction, and the logical hold of the libertarian statement helium puts guardant would beryllium the extremity of the prohibition connected indoor smoking.’

Disposable vapes are considered highly atrocious for the environment, being hard to recycle and afloat of harmful discarded specified arsenic lithium, artillery acerb and mercury.

The Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) estimates astir 5 cardinal single-use vapes were either littered oregon thrown distant each week past year.

Vape usage successful the UK is estimated to person grown by 400% betwixt 2012 and 2023, and astir 9.1% of the colonisation is present believed to bargain and usage them.

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