ASH Scotland welcomes confirmation that the Tobacco and Vapes Bill will be introduced before Christmas

ASH Scotland is today (Monday 21 October 2024) welcoming confirmation from the UK Government’s Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting MP, that the UK-wide Tobacco and Vapes Bill is being scheduled to be introduced before Christmas.

Sheila Duffy, Chief Executive of ASH Scotland, said: “We welcome the UK Government’s confirmation that it intends to introduce the Tobacco and Vapes Bill before Christmas, which we hope will include strong prevention measures to continue driving down use of tobacco – the biggest preventable killer in Scotland causing nearly 9,000 deaths and almost 90,000 hospitalisations a year.

“With tobacco industry promotions having lured youngsters into starting to use their addictive, harmful products for decades and the same now happening with e-cigarettes, we look forward to the Bill being introduced and urge politicians to work at pace to ensure the legislation rapidly reaches the statute book to eradicate the damage being inflicted by profit-centred multi-national corporations on people’s lives, especially in our poorest communities.”