Northampton shop owner notices 'massive change in the market' post-pandemic as council vows to tackle youth vaping

West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) passed a motion recognising the damage and extent of youth vaping and committing to press the government for tighter restrictions on the popular e-cigarettes.

Almost ten per cent of 11 to 15-year-olds nationally use vapes, despite the potentially life-altering implications.

Over the last six months, WNC’s trading standards team has seized 5,000 illegal vapes and has been developing plans to tackle the popularity of addictive vapes in children.

Owner of Northampton e-cigarette shop Right Vape, Ryan Michlig, spoke at the council meeting, on November 30, about his experience with the popularisation of single-use vapes and their demand in young people. He said that e-cigarettes can be very successful as a tool to help smokers switch over “in the correct hands”, but that he had noticed a “massive change in the market” post-pandemic.

Government figures show that the number of children using vapes in the past three years has tripled, with over 20 per cent of children aged 11 to 17 having tried a vape. This has a knock-on effect on not only their physical health but also their education- over half of teachers reported to NASUWT (a teachers’ union) that some pupils repeatedly leave lessons in order to vape.

Mr Michlig said: “We’re now seeing single-use products that are ready to go with high volumes of nicotine that most smokers don’t need. They are available for sale at retailers that are non-specialist now and many of them are falling into the hands of underage users.

“We need to look at more education. We need to get to the grassroots and speak to children in school to make them aware of the dangers of using these products that are addictive.”

The government announced earlier this year its commitment to creating the first ‘smoke-free generation’. A consultation will look into restricting the flavours and descriptions of vapes, regulating packaging, and restricting the sale of disposable vapes so they are not as attractive to underage children.

Councillor Koulla Jolley said: “We cannot just sit and do nothing when we know shops are targeting our children by fooling them with brightly coloured, bubblegum, sweet, fruity flavoured vapes. As a council, we need to put pressure on our government so we can help protect our children and teenagers from vaping.”

Using nicotine in adolescence can harm the parts of the brain that control attention, learning, mood, and impulse control and can worsen the symptoms of anxiety and depression. In the short term, using e-cigarettes may cause breathing difficulties and coughing and can cause fatal damage to young people’s lungs in long-term use.

Councillor Matt Golby, cabinet member for adult care, wellbeing and health integration said that, though he was “supportive” of the motion, there was already “a huge amount of work going on” in tackling underage vaping already by the council.

After passing the motion with an overwhelming majority, the council has resolved to write to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the need for “tighter restrictions on the marketing of vape products, their availability to underage children, and for more powers to be given to local authorities to issue on-the-spot fines for traders found selling to children”.

Councillor Catherine Russell, who presented the motion, said she was “delighted” to see the administration taking youth vaping seriously.

“West Northants will now add itself to the growing chorus of bodies calling on the government to act now to protect our children.”