Scotland falls in line with UK date in June
THE Scottish Government has confirmed it will delay the planned ban of single use vapes to 1 June, in order to align with the new enforcement date for England and Wales.
Previously confirmed for 1 April 2025, the new June date will allow retailer a further two months to sell their stock of disposable vape devices and prepare for the incoming ban.
There will also be no grace period for these devices and retailers will be expected to remove all disposable vapes from sale before 1 June.
The Westminster government announced plans to delay the ban date on 24 October, claiming that they caused a blight in littering across towns and city centres.
Mary Creagh, circular economy minister, said: “Single-use vapes are extremely wasteful and blight our towns and cities. That is why we are banning single use vapes as we end this nation’s throwaway culture.
“This is the first step on the road to a circular economy, where we use resources for longer, reduce waste, accelerate the path to net-zero and create thousands of jobs across the country.”
However, members of the convenience retail industry have said the UK Government’s plans will only serve to fuel the illicit market and do little to deter littering and youth uptake of the devices.
Mo Razzaq, national president of the Federation of Independent Retailers (the Fed), said: “Vape retailers are responsible and many offer a recycling option. Rather than banning disposable vapes, the government should be looking at making available more wats that these products can be disposed of safely and in an environmentally-friendly way.
“The Fed has previously called for the introduction of a disposal scheme – similar to the deposit return scheme for single use drinks containers – and we repeat this call today as we still believe that this would better address the government’s concerns on the environmental impact that single use vape products have.”
While slamming with the UK Gov’s plans, the Fed has reassured its members it will work with the government to ensure its members are prepared for next summer’s ban, with all existing stock sold.
Razzaq said: “Disposable vapes are usually more affordable, which is why many adults turn to them when they want to quit smoking.
“An outright ban will simply send many vapers towards unorthodox and illicit sources where there is no compliance to tobacco and vaping laws and a danger to health as the products being peddled are likely to contain dangers and illegal levels of toxic chemicals.”
