Written question WQ89148

Whilst it is against the law to sell nicotine containing vapes to anyone under the age of 18, it is clear that some young people are using these products. To understand the scale of this issue in Wales, Public Health Wales has established a multi-agency Vaping Among Children and Young People Incident Response Group, which includes representatives from Local Authorities. In addition to gathering evidence and data, the group is looking at opportunities for multi-agency actions to reduce the harm from vaping. This work is ongoing, but the group is meeting frequently to develop control measures.

I am also concerned by the feedback received from Local Authorities about the growing problem of illegal vape products in Wales, both in terms of the illegal sale of products to children to also the safety and quality of some products which have been found to contain dangerous contaminants and higher than permitted levels of nicotine. Officials in the Welsh Government are working with those in Trading Standards Wales to understand the issues and to develop solutions, including where we support more enforcement and intelligence gathering work. We also have a reporting mechanism for citizens to report anonymously illegal tobacco or illegal vapes in their communities via our NoIfs. No Butts website. The intelligence information reported is then provided directly to local trading standards teams for officers to investigate.