Parliament Matters

North East Hampshire’s Alex Brewer asked the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care what assessment has been made of the safety and regulation of snus and nicotine pouches.

Ashley Dalton, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Health and Social Care, responded: “Oral tobacco, otherwise known as snus, has been banned in the United Kingdom and the European Union since 1992. All tobacco products are harmful to health, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer has determined that smokeless tobacco is carcinogenic to humans.

“The Tobacco and Vapes Bill re-enacts the existing ban in a way that is more comprehensive, clearer, and more accessible for the relevant parties, such as retailers and enforcement agencies. We have no intention of allowing a banned and harmful product into the UK market.

“There is currently limited research and evidence into the harms of nicotine pouches. However, they are never recommended for children. Nicotine, the active ingredient in pouches, is a highly addicted drug, and we have a duty to protect children and young people from future harm and addiction.

“That is why, through the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, we are banning the advertisement and sponsorship of these products, introducing age of sale restrictions to 18 years old for nicotine pouches, banning free samples, and providing powers to restrict packaging, flavours, and point of sale displays.

“Whilst the use of nicotine pouches is currently low among adults, it is increasingly popular with younger male audiences. We will continue to monitor the use of these products and will update public health guidance and messaging accordingly.”

Then, Windsor’s Jack Rankin asked the Secretary of State whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of a ban on the marketing and advertising of e-cigarette and vaping products, non-medically licensed nicotine products, and heated tobacco products on adult smokers switching from combustible cigarettes to alternatives.

Ashley Dalton told him: “The Government has published a thorough impact assessment of the measures included in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, including the prohibition on the advertising of vaping products and nicotine products.

“Public health messaging and campaigns will continue to support the promotion of vapes as a quit aid for smokers, as outlined on the Better Health and National Health Service websites. Additionally, through our national Swap to Stop scheme, we’re helping adult smokers to quit by providing up to one million vapes to local authorities.

“The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 prohibits the advertisement and sponsorship of tobacco products, and that prohibition applies to tobacco products intended to be smoked, sniffed, sucked, or chewed. The Department’s view is that heated tobacco is captured by this definition.”

Rankin followed up by enquiring what steps the Secretary of State plans to take to ensure all data reviewed from the 10-year study to shed light on youth vaping is from the use of vapes compliant with UK regulations

Dalton replied: “Due to the nicotine content and unknown long-term harms, vapes and nicotine products carry risks of harm and addiction, and this is particularly acute for adolescents whose brains are still developing.”

This is not entirely true. Hon Lik invented the modern ecig in 2002/3 and vapes have been in mainstream use since 2009/2010. Over the last 15 years there have been no documented cases linking legal vaping with serious health issues. With reference to nicotine and brain development, there has only been experiments on mice and real world nicotine use has failed to mirror those results.

She continued: “The 10-year Adolescent Health Study (AHS) will follow a cohort of 100,000 eight- to 18-year-olds from across the United Kingdom and will provide further insights about the health consequences of vaping for young people. This will provide healthcare professionals and policymakers with the robust evidence they need to shape future policy. We will continue to engage with the AHS team during the study’s development.

“Alongside this, we will continue to clamp down on illicit vapes and those which are not compliant with UK regulations. We have also committed to invest £10 million of new funding in 2025/26, to support Trading Standards to tackle underage and illicit tobacco and vape sales.

“Through the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, we are also introducing powers to introduce a retail licensing scheme and create a more robust product registration scheme. A new registration scheme, along with stricter rules on testing and product requirements, will support a safe and legal market for tobacco and vape products, and will allow us to quickly identify illicit products which should not be on shelves.”

Dave Cross

Journalist at POTV

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Dave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.