IBVTA welcomes £10m funding
The Independent British Vape Trade Association has announced that it welcomes the government’s £10m funding boost to Trading Standards to address the illicit market
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by Dave Cross
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As covered by Planet of the Vapes this week, the Government has announced a new £10 million boost for Trading Standards which is claimed will bolster operations in local communities for the next year, including funding an expected 80 more apprentice enforcement officers. The Independent British Vape Trade Association (IBVTA) says it “welcomes” the move.
In a statement, the Independent British Vape Trade Association says: “This newly announced funding builds on other measures to tackle illicit tobacco and vapes. These include HMRC and Border Force’s £100 million Illicit Tobacco Strategy to crack down on illegal tobacco, and the new vaping duty coming into force in 2026 which will introduce new civil and criminal powers, giving them the ability to seize products and recruit over 200 additional compliance staff.”
John Herriman, Chief Executive at the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI), said: “CTSI is very welcoming of the announcement of substantial funding for Trading Standards services across England. This much-needed investment will strengthen our ability to support businesses in complying with current and future tobacco and vaping regulations and will also ensure we are well placed to support the protection of public health.
“It also reinforces our commitment to taking firm action against anyone who seeks to harm their local communities by choosing to operate outside the law. With these additional resources, we can make a real difference in both keeping consumers safe and ensuring a fair and responsible marketplace.”
Chief Executive of the Independent British Vape Trade Association, Gillian Golden, said: “We applaud the announcement of this much needed investment in strengthening the Trading Standards workforce. Local authorities have seen successive funding cuts from central government alongside significant rising financial pressures. The IBVTA applauds the work by trading standards teams across the country to level the playing field for legitimate businesses.
“We also support the measures in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill in giving more powers to Trading Standards, and we hope this funding injection will be replicated across other UK nations soon.”
Yesterday, the UK’s other trade body, the UK Vaping Industry Association said that the country also needs more significant penalties for those caught breaking the rules, suggesting that the £200 on-the-spot fines being introduced in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill “are far from what’s needed”. It suggested that rogue retailers and distributors should face fines of up to £10,000 and £100,000 respectively - generating a predicted £50m+ per year in additional funding for Trading Standards.
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave 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.
