Disposable Vapes Set To Be Banned In UK Over Child Addiction Concerns

The government is set to ban disposable vapes in an effort to stomp out nicotine addiction amongst children.

After a consultation with the Department of Health and Social Care the government concluded that the products are overwhelmingly aimed at children, who then become addicted.

The move which could come as soon as next week follows a series of calls from councils, leading paediatricians and public waste campaigners to take action.

While not explicitly confirming the ban, Science Minister Michelle Donelan but did allude to changes on the horizon.

“We have been looking into this and doing a review because this is a very worrying trend that we’re seeing,” she told Sky News.

“Young children are taking up vaping who have never smoked before and it is extremely dangerous to their health and well-being, and it is something we do need to act on. And as a government what we are trying to do is recognise what are the key challenges.”

Research carried out by recycling charity Material Focus found 73 per cent of UK vapers say they throw away single-use vapes or around eight vapes a second being discarded.

Scott Butler, the executive director at Material Focus, said that the “problem with single-use vapes has gotten further out of control”.

“Single-use vapes are a strong contender for being the most environmentally wasteful, damaging and dangerous consumer product ever made”.