Promoting vapes to kids is ridiculous, says Rishi Sunak

It is "ridiculous" that vapes are promoted to children, Rishi Sunak has said arsenic helium pledged to look astatine ways of strengthening selling rules.

Speaking to ITV's This Morning, the premier curate said helium didn't privation his daughters "seduced by these things".

Earlier this week, a BBC probe found vapes confiscated from schoolhouse pupils contained precocious levels of lead, which could impact encephalon development.

It is amerciable to merchantability vapes to under-18s.

NHS figures released past year recovered that portion determination was a autumn successful the fig of schoolhouse children taking drugs and smoking cigarettes, vape usage had risen to 9% among 11 to 15-year-olds successful England - up from 6% successful 2018.

In the aforesaid period, vaping among 15-year-old girls jumped from 10% to 21%.

A much caller survey by Action connected Smoking Health recovered that country shops were "the main root of acquisition and kid consciousness of instore promotion had grown importantly successful the past year".

Vapes oregon e-cigarettes are mostly considered to beryllium safer than mean cigarettes due to the fact that they bash not incorporate harmful tobacco.

The authorities says vaping is "an important tool" to assistance adults springiness up smoking and lend to its people of making smoking obsolete successful England by 2030.

However, it besides says children should not instrumentality up vaping and has launched a consultation seeking grounds connected however the quality and promotion of vapes whitethorn pull children.

Forty countries person banned vapes completely, portion others person sought to marque them little appealing to young people. Canada, for example, enactment restrictions connected the types of vape flavours that tin beryllium sold.

Speaking to ITV's This Morning programme, Mr Sunak expressed interest astir children, who are aged 12 and 10, taking up vaping.

"I person 2 young girls - that's wherefore I interest astir it."

He pointed to £3m of funding, announced past month, for a squad of trading standards officers to tackle shops illegally selling vapes to children.

He besides said helium wanted to look astatine "how tin we fortify the rules connected however they are marketed, promoted - what bash they look like".

He added: "It looks similar they are targeted astatine kids which is ridiculous - I don't privation my kids seduced by immoderate of these things."

Labour has said it would prohibition vapes from being branded and advertised to entreaty to children if it wins power.

The enactment has besides promised to enactment with section councils and the NHS to guarantee vapes "are being utilized arsenic a halt smoking aide, alternatively than a caller signifier of smoking".