Everything you need to know about new ban on disposable vapes coming this year

Vaping in the UK will be a lot different in 2025 as new rules regarding smoking and vaping come into force.

Anyone who is a fan of vapes should start counting their days, as the UK government confirmed in 2024 that laws regarding the sale of certain types of e-cigarettes will change.

Here's everything you need to know.

Why is there a ban on single-use vapes?

The idea to ban vapes was previously floated by the Conservative government and now prime minister and Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, has decided to follow through with the plans.

“It’s a huge burden on the NHS, and, of course, it’s a burden on the taxpayer. So, yes, we are going to take decisions in this space," he said at a press conference, while also expressing his concern for the popularity of vapes among children.

One of the biggest features of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill will see disposable e-cigarettes outright banned in England and Wales. The sale and advertising of vapes will also become more tightly regulated, as well as tighter restrictions on the flavour, display and packaging of vapes.

The government is hoping these new measures will limit the number of young people using them.

The ban aims to protect young people in particular (Johner Images / Getty)

“The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will stop vapes from deliberately being branded and advertised to appeal to children, including by regulating flavours, packaging, and changing how and where they are displayed in shops," a government spokesperson previously told LADbible.

"Ministers are reviewing proposals to restrict the sale and supply of disposable vapes more widely before setting out next steps."

The ban aims to also protect the environment and to introduce a generation ban on the sale of vapes.

There still is not enough research to know the long-term effects of vapes on young people because it hasn’t been around long enough. The NHS says that while vaping is ‘substantially less harmful than smoking, it is unlikely to be totally harmless’.

The healthiest option is to quit smoking and vaping.

When does the ban come into place?

Vapers, count your days. The ban on the sale of disposable vapes in the UK is scheduled to begin on 1 June 2025.

What happens if you want to buy a single-use vape?

Disposable vapes will be banned from the date listed above. Starting in June, retailers in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland will require a licence in order to sell 'tobacco, vape and nicotine products' in stores. Scotland already has a similar scheme in place.

This will also impact who can buy cigarettes, because the bill will aim to ban anyone born after 1 January 2009 from ever being legally able to smoke. This will be done by gradually raising the age at which tobacco can legally be purchased.

The government also wants to protect the environment (Peter Dazeley / Contributor / Getty)

Revealing further details about how the generational smoking ban will work, Andrew Gwynne, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health and Prevention, told LADbible: "This isn't about punishing young people. The enforcement regime that the bill brings in will tackle rogue retailers, not young people.

"So somebody illegally buys a cigarette. It will be the retailer that is punished, not the young person. I think that's a really important distinction to make. We're not criminalising smoking, but we are enforcing the restrictions on retailers to be responsible and mostly retailers are."

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