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Daily Record
5 days ago
- Health
- Daily Record
Disposables vapes ban 'could be as profound for public health as smoking ban'
SUNDAY MAIL EXCLUSIVE: Glasgow MP Zubir Ahmed claims today's ban on sale and supply of single-use vapes will have 'material impact' on teen vaping rates. A surgeon-turned-MP has declared that today's disposable vapes ban could have as profound an impact on public health as the 2006 indoor smoking ban. From today, the sale and supply of single-use vapes is prohibited by law with shops facing £5000 fines and potentially up to two years in jail if they flout the rules. Labour MP Zubir Ahmed has said he believes the move will quickly have a 'material impact' on Scotland's teen vaping epidemic – with a quarter of 15-year-olds currently hooked on the nicotine-based gadgets. Glasgow South West MP Ahmed, a transplant specialist who worked in the NHS for 20 years, said: 'I feel like this is of a magnitude of when the smoking ban came in in 2006 in Scotland. 'There was lots of umming and ahhing about whether people would comply – but in the end, they did, because that's what people in Scotland and Britain do. They're generally law-abiding, good people that obey the law.' In the year following the ban on smoking in indoor places, the number of hospital admissions linked to smoking plummeted. Since then, youth smoking rates have fallen to historic lows. But the rise in teen vaping – with candy-flavoured e-cigs like Gummy Bear and Cotton Candy being cynically marketed at kids – has raised fears of a new generation being hooked on nicotine. Ahmed said: 'I think the ban will have a material impact immediately on youth vaping – but more importantly, for a lot of these kids, vapes can be a bridge into smoking and I think we'll finally break that link as well.' It comes as the ban sparked scenes of panic-buying as stores and online retailers tried to shift their stocks at bargain prices. Refillable vapes will still be available after today however tens of thousands of Scots are thought to have been stockpiling their favourite disposable vape flavours. Of Scotland's estimated 150,000 users of disposable vapes, around a quarter (27 per cent) have been stashing up to nine weeks' worth, a recent OnePoll survey suggests. There were reports of shops offering single-use vapes at 'everything must go'-style discount prices. One Spar store in Alloa told LBC Radio of a buying frenzy after they cut prices to three boxes of vapes for £30 – which with 10 vapes per box, works out at £1 each. It comes amid warnings that despite the landmark ban, the environmental toll of single-use vapes – which are difficult to recycle and contain critical materials like lithium batteries – will continue to be felt. In the UK, an estimated 8.2million vapes are thrown away or littered every week – or 13 vapes per second – according to Material Focus. Scott Butler of the anti-waste group said: 'The threat of a 'vapocalypse' remains and new big puff and pod vape models are already contributing to an environmental nightmare.' Gillian Martin, Scotland's acting Net Zero Secretary, said: 'Scotland was the first nation in the UK to commit to taking action on single-use vapes. 'This change to the law fulfils a Programme for Government commitment and will help tackle the threat that single-use vapes pose to our environment as well as to our public health.' Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Meanwhile, self-styled sustainable vaping firm Riot Labs have produced data this week suggesting more than a quarter of a million Scots are hoarding used disposable vapes in cupboards, drawers, pockets and cars as they're unsure how to dispose of them. They've teamed up with Scots eco campaigner Laura Young - who spearheaded the grassroots campaign to ban the devices in the UK - to tell users what to do with their old e-cigs. Their advice includes using online tools like Recycle Your Electricals to find your nearest drop-off point for old disposables, not trying to dismantle vapes yourself, and not sticking them in the regular bin where the batteries pose a fire hazard. Laura said: "Disposable vapes are the poster child of wasteful design, packed with precious materials, designed to be used once, then tossed. This ban is a vital victory for our environment and a wake-up call to the industry. "We cannot continue normalising single-use electronics that pollute our streets, endanger our health, and waste critical resources like lithium. "With the UK Government now taking decisive action, it's time to clear out our drawers, recycle properly, and use this moment as a blueprint to challenge other throwaway products."
Daily Record
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Daily Record
Union chief in warning over far right poverty fears
SUNDAY MAIL EXCLUSIVE: The STUC leader said mainstream parties don't have strong enough poverty policies One of Scotland's most powerful union leaders has warned the far right is weaponising legitimate poverty fears because main stream parties don't have policies to redistribute wealth. STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer has spoken out as John Swinney prepares to hold a summit on "democracy and respect' in Glasgow tomorrow which will be attended by churches, trade unions, charities and political leaders. She has challenged the First Minister to make sure the event is not just a 'talking shop' by confronting policy choices like nationalisation of key industries she believes would shift power out of the hands of unaccountable billionaires and spread money more equally. Foyer said: 'Across this country cynical forces are driving the rise of the far right, feeding like vultures off the alienation - indeed the desperation - of many in our communities. 'Legitimate fears and concerns are being twisted into false and hateful narratives which must be countered. 'No-one is more concerned about poverty, homelessness or the safety of women and children on the streets than we are. The difference is, we know who is really to blame. 'This summit must not just be a business-as-usual gathering of groups who, no doubt, mean well but aren't prepared to roll their sleeves up and tackle head on the threat we are facing. 'The Scottish Government knows this. We've made it clear to them. We take them at their word that this summit will mean hearing from those at the heart of our communities - unions, community groups, anti-racist campaigners and more – who are best placed to counteract the poison of the far-right. 'But we also know that there's a job of work to be done by all those involved to look in their own backyards too. Any organisation who turns up at this event thinking they and their members are immune from all this should stay at home. 'And yes, this includes unions too. We're seeing some folks within our ranks falling prey to the illusionary, false pledges offered by the populists and far-right who promise salvation to their ills but will deliver nothing but division and rancour. 'We know that centrist policies that prioritise the economic status quo has played a critical role in the rise of the far-right. The lack of hope and optimism for the future that working class people feel, with unaffordable energy bills, skyrocketing food prices and housing costs still stupidly expensive, means they're searching for an answer. 'That answer has not yet been adequately addressed within mainstream political parties.' Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Foyer believes a new age of nationalised industry is the only way to spread wealth more equally rather than allowing power and money to be increasingly centralised in the hands of a small number of billionaires. She added: 'The answer is to begin to shift power so that the wealth and assets are owned by the many. It means public ownership of our utilities to stop the billionaire energy giants ripping off members and public intervention to protect decent jobs. 'It means ensuring everyone has a decent standard of living. It means organising folk within our spaces to ensure that their valid and legitimate fears for the future are addressed and better, kinder and more collective solutions are found. 'So, let's be one hundred percent clear, migrants aren't to blame. It's a failure of our state, the failure of our political class, that has members within our community turning to the populist right and far-right for answers.' Foyer insisted the STUC was the first organisation to welcome the announcement of Swinney's summit to fight the rise of the far right and that it would also be a key theme of the STUC's upcoming Congress in Dundee next week. She added: 'We need to be ready to have hard conversations about how we got here and be ready to work on solutions that can build working class unity in our communities founded on hope not hatred. 'That hope comes from the brilliant individuals and organisations who campaign together collectively for healthier communities, to tackle poverty, campaign for better housing and celebrate the richness of our culture.'
