Tempting dessert flavours and bright colours used in vape marketing have sparked fears for community leaders and Trading Standards bosses in Staffordshire that the products are being targeted at children.
Councillors have also been told there are also concerns about vape shops operating close to schools in the county given the number of children using vapes has tripled in the past three years.
It is illegal to sell them to under 18s, but several shops across the country have been caught carrying out underage sales, with Staffordshire Trading Standards conducting dozens of “test purchases” as part of action to crackdown on the practice, the county council’s Safeguarding Overview and Scrutiny Committee heard at its latest meeting.
Trish Caldwell, the county commissioner for regulatory services and community safety, said:
“Illegal vapes are very prevalent at the moment and there is a growing issue in respect of illicit vapes. We’ve got non-compliance and the issue of selling to children.
“Vapes are substantially less harmful than smoking because they don’t contain tobacco, and therefore can be used as an effective tool for people who want to stop. That aspect of being able to have vapes to help reduce smoking is important.
“However, the number of children using them has tripled in the last three years and 20% of children have tried vaping in 2023. Due to the nicotine content and the unknown long-term harms, this carries a big risk for children and also that addiction element.
“Health advice is clear – young people and those who have never smoked should not vape. Encouraging children to use a product that is designed for adults to quit smoking is not acceptable.
“We are seeing regularly promoted products that are clearly designed to appeal to children through flavours, descriptions and the in store marketing, despite the fact there is a risk of nicotine addiction. There are fruit and dessert flavours and attractive wording can be used as well, so you see things like ‘berry blast’ – things you associate with children’s confectionery.”
Trish Caldwell
During 2022-23 national Trading Standards identified that 27% of 1,000 vape test purchases carried out for underage sales resulted in an illegal sale, councillors were told.
In Staffordshire 76 such purchases have been carried out and 9% of those resulted in a sale to children.
The meeting was told that in 2022/23 2.1 million illicit vapes were seized by Trading Standards across England.
“These vapes, we know because we’ve tested them, carry unknown ingredients, higher levels of nicotine than they should and are targeted at children as well.
“Within Staffordshire we have seized 115,000 illicit vapes in this year to date. Many of those we have seized are not compliant with the law, in that they are larger tanks than are acceptable and have far too many puffs included in them.”
Trish Caldwell
Cllr Janet Eagland, who represents Lichfield Rural North, said:
“I’m very concerned about vaping because it was brought to my attention some months ago about just how natural it is for children to be able to use them. They share it amongst themselves as well.
“Why can’t we have the same restrictions we have with tobacco? It took us a long time to restrict the rules around selling tobacco to everybody, whether children or adults and we’re going to have to go down this road with vaping because it’s on the increase.”
Cllr Janet England, Staffordshire County Council
Other councillors asked how parents and schools can help Trading Standards tackle particular areas of concern around illegal sales.
Ms Caldwell said:
“We have a hotline so people can report that sort of issue and we pick up quite a bit of intelligence through that.
“Rest assured, when we find businesses [breaking the law] we will follow the route and prosecute.”
Trish Caldwell
