Chamber and committees

The retail side is handled through our register, which I talked about earlier and which includes shops that stock vapes. With regard to spaces and where people can vape, as I said, we will consult on that once the bill has passed. With regard to displays and flavours, there is UK-wide legislation on that, and we will work with the UK Government on its implementation.

As I said in my opening remarks, between 80 and 90 per cent of people who start smoking do so before they are 21. From my perspective, it is important to recognise that and to recognise the importance of prevention before people start. You raise really important points about the recognition of products. If you go into anywhere that sells tobacco, the grey blinds are pulled down and you cannot see the products. With vapes, there is basically a rainbow of colours and flavours that are very attractive to young people. Evidence would show that flavours such as candy floss, gummy bear and watermelon are there to attract children. That is why it is so important to have UK-wide legislation, because it gives consistency across the four nations for consumers and for retailers.

We are working just now—because it is part of our tobacco and vaping framework, which was launched last year—to ensure that we have a register that is fit for purpose, not only for those of us who are tracking the retail elements of nicotine products but for retailers, to ensure that they get the right information. The investment is going into the register just now. Of the four nations, we are the only one that has a register for tobacco and vapes, and that is very positive.

It is included in the legislation so that it is all in the same legislation and so that there is consistency.

I thank Gillian Mackay for that question and empathise with her experiences. I see the same thing outside hospitals. I am pleased that we are working with Action on Smoking and Health Scotland, which is doing a report on the impact of smoke-free zones outside hospitals, and that work is also being extended to other spaces. However, I have to be clear that we will not be introducing any additional spaces without proper and robust consultation and engagement with all stakeholders and the general public.

I cannot respond with regard to the evidence for banning snus, but I remember very clearly back in the 1990s when it was a problem, and there were a lot of news stories about snus. I remember the impact that it had—mouth cancer, for example. We are looking at tobacco, vapes and other nicotine products. As I said in my introduction, this is positive legislation that looks to stop people before they start and ensure that young people who are born after 1 January 2009 do not have the opportunity to use those nicotine products. Doing that is incredibly important. I do not know whether Ruth Foulis has anything to add in answer to Dr Gulhane’s questions on snus.

There are a number of ways in which people can cease smoking. I am pleased that figures out just today show an increase in the number of people who are using cessation services in the NHS in Scotland. I think that the figure is now over 30,000, which is back to pre-pandemic levels, which is really positive.

There are a variety of approaches and treatments that people can use to stop smoking. Linda Bauld is the expert on that, so I will bring her in.

That provision of the legislation that will be repealed is specific to Scotland. We had consulted and taken advice from other organisations, including ASH Scotland, which felt that it was not appropriate to criminalise someone’s addiction to nicotine or tobacco. That is why that aspect of the legislation will be repealed. As I say, we are the only nation of the four UK nations to have that provision. There is absolutely no change to the legislation in relation to proxy buying for underage people or in relation to retailers selling to underage people. The legislation will change only to remove criminalisation of under 18s.

I am delighted to be here to provide evidence on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill LCM, which was lodged in our Parliament on 21 November.

I am sure that, like me, committee members were disappointed when the previous version of the bill fell at the dissolution of the UK Parliament. However, I tend to think that things happen for a reason, and the reason in this case was the opportunity to create a stronger bill.

I remain committed to a tobacco-free Scotland by 2034, which, at its core, has the aim of Scotland being a nation where people live longer and healthier lives. This UK-wide Tobacco and Vapes Bill will help us to achieve that.

Although smoking rates have reduced in recent years, people are still taking up smoking. Cancer Research UK estimates that around 350 people start smoking tobacco each day, with the vast majority of those—nine out of 10—starting before the age of 21, and with people living in our most deprived areas being most likely to start.

The bill is about stopping that start—it is about creating a generational change, meaning that those born after 1 January 2009 will never legally be able to buy tobacco. The bill will gradually increase the age of sale for tobacco products and provide powers to legislate on vape flavours, displays and packaging, as well as introducing an advertising ban for vapes and nicotine products.

This landmark legislation will ban vapes and nicotine products from being deliberately promoted and advertised to children, to stop the next generation becoming hooked on nicotine. The bill will provide powers to extend the indoor smoking ban to certain outdoor settings, subject to full consultation. If passed, with the consent of the Scottish Parliament, the bill will benefit public health in Scotland and help to save lives.

As I have indicated, the bill also helps to take forward actions in our tobacco and vaping framework. We have worked closely and collaboratively with the UK Government and with other devolved Governments on the bill, and have absolutely ensured that the bill works for Scotland and will deliver impactful change.

Colleagues around the table will remember back to the time before the 2006 indoor smoking ban or to a time when tobacco was advertised and openly displayed in shops. Before legislative changes came into effect, it was hard to think of life without a smoking area in a restaurant or without a racing car covered in red and white or black and gold. We could only dream of such things not existing. It is now hard to think of a world where that would be acceptable.

This bill, like the legislation before it, creates that break with the status quo and provides the opportunity to do something impactful for the next generation, with tobacco, specifically, becoming something that is relegated to history. We have the opportunity for future generations in Scotland to learn about tobacco from books and not to experience its devastating consequences. I therefore recommend that the Scottish Parliament consents to the legislative consent memorandum.

I thank Brian Whittle for his question, and I recognise the picture that he painted at the start of it. When I visited a school in my constituency, I was pretty shocked to see the handful of disposable vapes that a teacher produced. Therefore, I absolutely understand where Mr Whittle is coming from.

I agree that we need to improve enforcement, which is why we, as a Government, have a very good and close working relationship with the local authorities. In answer to Gillian Mackay’s question I indicated that we are investing £3 million directly in local authorities to support enforcement, and we also have an important working relationship with the Society of Chief Officers of Trading Standards in Scotland. Moreover, we already have fixed penalty notices in place. The important message that will be sent with the passing of this bill and the additional UK-wide regulations on displaying vapes will, I hope, help with enforcement, too.