Bromley Lib Dems Call for Action on the Sale of Vapes to Young People

Bromley Liberal Democrats have frequently expressed concerns about the sale of vapes to young people, and have repeated these concerns following reports that a new vape shop is being opened on Widmore Road in close proximity to two secondary schools.

Bromley Lib Dem councillor Graeme Casey promptly raised these concerns with Council officers, who stated that they would have an officer routinely patrol the new shop. In addition, the Council also confirmed that there is unfortunately no requirement for shops to have a licence to sell vapes, however the law explicitly bans the sale of e-cigarettes or vapes to children, as well as requiring that that every vaping product containing nicotine must be registered with the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

The Lib Dems have called for more action on this issue, such as a ban on single-use vapes as well as more regulations on vapes, including requiring age warnings on packets and an end to toy-like advertising which attracts young people. This comes following a report from the government that young people should not take up vaping as an alternative to smoking.

If any resident suspects that a shop is selling vapes to children, they are encouraged to report these concerns to Bromley Trading Standards by emailing trading.standards@bromley.gov.uk.