England’s children’s commissioner has urged the government to crack down on the “insidious” marketing of vapes to young people.

In an interview with The Guardian, Rachel de Souza said the government would be “failing a generation” if these “highly addictive and sometimes dangerous products” became mainstream.

Rachel’s statement follows research into children’s e-cigarette use which found “deeply worrying” evidence that they felt “pressured to vape, with addictions preventing some from concentrating for whole lessons, while others are avoiding school toilets for fear of peer pressure to vape.”

She is now calling for the government to ban disposable vapes and to be regulated similarly to tobacco. Rachel also urged politicians to ban nicotine-free vapes, which are seen as gateways to nicotine vapes.

Rachel added, “We urgently need stricter regulation of this ‘wild west’ market. It is insidious that these products are intentionally marketed and promoted to children, both online and offline.

“Many children who are addicted to vaping have never even smoked tobacco, with vaping acting as a gateway rather than a quitting strategy. Children deserve to lead long, happy, healthy lives, which is why I am unequivocal in my view that no child should be smoking or vaping.”

In May 2023, a BBC News investigation revealed that vapes collected from a college in Kidderminster contained harmful levels of lead, nickel and chromium. These heavy metals can impair brain development, cause allergies and trigger blood clotting.

Rishi Sunak, the prime minister, also announced plans to clamp down on firms targeting children with free vape samples in June. At the time of the announcement, Rishi said, “The marketing and the illegal sales of vapes to children is completely unacceptable, and I will do everything in my power to end this practice for good.”

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