New legislation to ban the sale of single-use vapes from 1 June 2025 has been laid in Parliament, Circular Economy Minister Mary Creagh confirmed today.
Single-use vapes are not rechargeable or refillable, and are typically discarded as general waste in a bin or littered, rather than recycled – contributing to a flood of litter on our streets. Even when they are sent to recycling facilities, they usually have to be disassembled by hand – a slow and difficult process which will struggle to keep up with the pace of vape production. Their lithium-ion batteries can also present a fire risk to waste industry workers.
Last year, it was estimated that almost five million single-use vapes were either littered or thrown away in general waste every week in the UK, almost four times as much as the previous year and the equivalent of eight being thrown away per second. In 2022, more than 40 tonnes of lithium from single-use vapes was discarded, which is the same amount used to power 5,000 electric vehicles.
Vape usage in England grew by more than 400% between 2012 and 2023, with 9.1% of the British public now buying and using these products. The long-term health impacts of vaping are unknown, and the nicotine contained within them can be highly addictive, with withdrawal sometimes causing anxiety, trouble concentrating and headaches.
Circular Economy Minister Mary Creagh said:
Single-use vapes are extremely wasteful and blight our towns and cities.
That is why we are banning single use vapes as we end this nation’s throwaway culture.
This is the first step on the road to a circular economy, where we use resources for longer, reduce waste, accelerate the path to net-zero and create thousands of jobs across the country.
Minister for Public Health and Prevention, Andrew Gwynne, said:
It’s deeply worrying that a quarter of 11-15-year-olds used a vape last year and we know disposables are the product of choice for the majority of kids vaping today.
Banning disposable vapes will not only protect the environment, but importantly reduce the appeal of vapes to children and keep them out of the hands of vulnerable young people.
The government will also introduce the Tobacco and Vapes Bill – the biggest public health intervention in a generation – which will protect young people from becoming hooked on nicotine and pave the way for a smoke-free UK.
