Sunak must face down Tory right on vaping ban

IT’S easy to criticise the Prime Minister for there has been a lot to be critical about during his premiership.

But as Rishi Sunak and the Tory party increasingly look set for electoral defeat, the PM has an opportunity to write a chapter in his legacy that could have a lasting positive impact in Britain.

Granted there isn’t much to write home about yet. However, if he manages to stare down the Tory right over his proposed tobacco sale ban then that will not only be remembered at the ballot box by voters but by the country as whole for years to come.

Sunak is absolutely right to look to “stamp out” youth vaping. A public consultation found that 70 per cent of respondents were in favour of a ban.

While it is already illegal to sell vapes to anyone under 18, disposable vapes are driving a rise in youth vaping.

Disposable vapes are not only cheaper but also so obviously aimed at younger people with their colourful packaging and sickly sweet flavours.

What should be an aid for getting people to kick the habit of smoking cigarettes has become a worrying youth issue.

In 2021, only 7.7 per cent of current vapers aged 11 to 17 used disposable vapes. That increased to 52 per cent in 2022 and 69 per cent in 2023.

Teachers and parents have also noticed a rise in the number of young people vaping.

Sunak’s plans to get rid of disposable vapes to protect children’s health have been met by opposition from within his own party including former prime minister Liz Truss, who says the move is “profoundly unconservative”. But the PM is on the mark when he says there isn’t anything “unconservative about caring about our children’s health”.

The Prime Minister must not be cowed by membersofhisownparty.