‘Rapidly escalating threat’: Environmental groups call for single-use vape ban
Environmental groups have called for the sale of single-use e-cigarettes to be banned due their “rapidly escalating threat”.
In an open letter to environment secretary Thérèse Coffey and health secretary Steve Barclay, 18 environment and health groups, including Green Alliance and RSPCA, argue that disposable vapes are “unnecessary electrical items” that contain single use plastic, nicotine and batteries, all of which are “hazardous to the environment and wildlife when littered”.
The demand follows research from Material Focus earlier this year that showed that at least 1.3m disposable vapes are thrown away every week, equating to two vapes per second, enough to fill 22 football pitches per year.
The letter also pointed to the rising uptake of disposable vapes among young people as “particularly concerning”, with a seven-fold increase in the percentage of 11 to 17 year olds opting for disposable products since 2021.
They state that because reusable vapes are available and accessible in the UK, with brands like Juul, banning single use e-cigarettes, such as the largely popular Elf Bar, would not inhibit public health efforts to get people to quit smoking.
However, Christopher Snowdon, head of lifestyle economics at the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) said that disposable vapes are not a health threat, but are “hugely important in helping smokers who want to quit”.
“For smokers who are trying vaping for the first time, disposables are the most appealing option,” he told Morning Wire, especially when they are “simple, convenient and cheap.”
Public Health England has previously concluded that vaping ‘is around 95 per cent safer than smoking’.
This was also echoed by Cancer Research UK, which acknowledged that e-cigarettes were ‘far closer to other nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) products than tobacco in terms of harm’.
Recent data from Action on Smoking and Health found that 2.4m people who vape are former smokers, making up a large majority of the 4.3m Brits who are now actively vaping.