| answer text |
<p>Smoking is responsible for approximately 80,000 deaths a year in the United Kingdom,
and causes around one in four cancer deaths in the UK. It also costs our country £17
billion a year, and puts a huge burden on the National Health Service. That is why
we have introduced the Tobacco and Vapes Bill to create the first smokefree generation,
and enable us to further crack down on youth vaping. The Tobacco and Vapes Bill is
available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3703"
target="_blank">https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3703</a></p><p>On 12 February 2024
the Regulatory Policy Committee (RPC) gave opinion on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill impact
assessment and rated it green (fit for purpose). However, on 19 March 2024, ahead
of the introduction of the bill, a revised version was sent to the RPC for comment.
This included changes to reflect the inclusion of Northern Ireland in the bill, following
the formation of a Northern Ireland Executive, and a power in the bill to enable the
current notification system for nicotine vapes to also cover non-nicotine vapes and
other consumer nicotine products, for instance nicotine pouches. The RPC have publicly
stated that they welcome the resubmission of the revised impact assessment, and we
expect a revised opinion to be issued shortly. The statement from the RPC is available
at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/the-tobacco-and-vapes-bill-statement-from-the-rpc"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/news/the-tobacco-and-vapes-bill-statement-from-the-rpc</a></p>
|
|
