Around one million children aged 11 to 17 in Great Britain – nearly one in five – tried vaping in 2025, according to the charity Action on Smoking and Health. Now the government is consulting on plans to strip vapes of the bright colours and sweet-inspired names that health experts say are deliberately luring young people into nicotine addiction.
Under the proposals, vapes would have to be sold in plain packaging with strict limits on branding. Only simple flavour descriptions such as “apple” or “cola” would be allowed, banning names and flavours inspired by sweets, cocktails or other confectionery. The products would also have to be moved out of sight in shops, in the same way cigarettes and tobacco are currently displayed.
“Government launches consultation to ban enticing vape flavours and colourful packaging aimed at children.”
The 12-week consultation, announced by the Health Secretary James Murray, follows the recent passing of the Tobacco and Vapes Act, which created the UK’s first smoke-free generation. That law made it illegal for shops to sell cigarettes to anyone born after 1 January 2009, effectively imposing a lifelong ban on tobacco sales for current 17-year-olds and all younger children. It also gave ministers the power to ban vaping in cars carrying children, in playgrounds, outside schools and at hospitals.
Murray said: “The evidence is clear: there are too many young people experimenting with vapes, attracted by the array of flavours, bright colours and marketing displays. We must act now to reduce the appeal of addictive vapes to our children. Vapes are less harmful than cigarettes and can play an important role in helping adult smokers to quit, but they should never be designed or marketed in ways that tempt children. These proposals are about striking the right balance and I urge everyone to have their say.”
Health experts have said there is “no legitimate reason” for nicotine products to come in neon packaging, feature cartoon images, or use flavours and branding designed to catch a child’s eye.
The consultation also proposes that cigarette packets carry inserts directing smokers to help with quitting, and that all tobacco products – including rolling paper and cigars – come in plain packaging. The new measures come after a ban on single-use vapes and ahead of future bans on the sale of vapes from vending machines and a planned end to all vape advertising and sponsorship.
The government said the aim was to make vaping less attractive to children while ensuring adult smokers can still access the products to help them quit. The consultation will run for 100 days.