Rishi Sunak set to ban vape sellers giving kids free samples to get them hooked under crackdown
VAPE sellers will be banned from giving kids free samples under a crackdown on addictive e-cigs.
The PM will today announce that fruit and candy-flavoured nicotine-free “gateway” vapes aimed at teens will face a total ban, as previously revealed by The Sun.
Anti-vape squads will be able to issue on the spot fines to shops illegally selling vapes to under 18s, under the Government’s proposals.
Kids will learn about the harmful effects of vaping at school, as they already do for smoking and boozing.
Spot checks of vapes sold at car-boot sales, corner shops and online will aim to stamp out any under-the-counter flogging to children.
And rampant social media vape adverts could also face a ban in future.
Writing for The Sun today, Rishi Sunak vows to tackle the “grim reality” of surging underage vaping, adding: “nothing is more important than protecting our kids”.
The PM even reveals he had fretted over his own daughters, Krishna and Anoushka, facing temptation from the devices.
Shocking NHS statistics show one in ten children aged 11 to 15 use e-cigs — even though selling them to under-18s is illegal.
In a 2023 survey of 11 to 17-year-olds by Action on Smoking and Health, two out of five young people said they smoke vapes “just to give it a try”.
And about one in five say they sample e-cigs because “other people use them”.
Recent research by the BBC has shown nicotine in nicotine-free vapes — with others even including lead.
Mr Sunak said of his plan: “My daughters are ten and 12, and I do not want the way vapes are marketed and sold to be attractive to them.
“That’s why I am launching a crackdown to go after the crooks putting vapes into children’s hands.”