Imogen James
Live reporter

As the vape ban is coming, our live page is going.

But here's a handy way to get back to the posts you might want to see before we finish:

• Find out the basics of the disposable vape ban, coming into effect on Sunday
• Why are they being banned? The environment and youth participation are the main concerns
• That might leave you wondering what is a disposable vape - we've got that covered
• What does the government say? We heard from the nature minister this morning who explained the government will take further action if necessary
• It comes as companies are switching to create reusable products, that look similar to disposable vapes, to keep their markets
• We also heard from an 18-year-old who started vaping when he was 12 and says he "loves vapes" - while one woman said that she is "so beyond happy" about the ban

You can also read more on our website from a campaigner who says the disposable vapes ban is unlikely to reduce appeal and dive into why the government is implementing the changes and how the ban is going to work.

Thanks for joining us.

It isn't just disposable vapes in the firing line from the government. They are currently working on other changes to curb the use of vapes.

Vaping tax

Vaping products are already subject to 20% VAT but, unlike tobacco, they do not currently attract a separate additional tax.

A new vaping duty will start on 1 October 2026. It will be charged at a flat rate of £2.20 per 10ml vaping liquid.

At the same time, tobacco duty will be increased to preserve the financial incentive for cigarette smokers to switch to vaping.

Advertising and sponsorship ban

The government's Tobacco and Vapes Bill - which is currently making its way through Parliament - will outlaw vape advertising and sponsorship.

It will also restrict the flavours, packaging and display of vapes and other nicotine products.

Children have been targeted with colours, branding and flavours such as bubble gum or candy floss, to push a product that can lead to nicotine addiction, the British Medical Association has warned.

Illegal vapes

The government is also cracking down on illegal vapes, which are widely available and are much more likely to contain other harmful chemicals or drugs.

More than six million illegal vaping products were seized by Trading Standards officers across England between 2022 and 2024, according to analysis by the BBC.

Imogen James
Live reporter

Image source, Gillian Golden

Retailers are set to face a “significant downturn” in revenue when the ban takes effect, the chief executive of the Independent British Vape Trade Association (IBVTA) tells me.

Gillian Golden gives a voice to the independent vaping sector in government bodies and regulatory agencies.

She says that whilst specialist vape stores will be least affected, because of their wide range of products, the bigger impact will be on the grocery and convenience sector, “where single use vapes have dominated sales for a few years now”.

Most members of the IBVTA were “delighted by the news of the ban”, Golden says, because they “were uncomfortable“ to be selling the wasteful products.

However, she explains that others were “a little disappointed to see a ban on products that had enabled many smokers, particularly ‘social smokers’, to access vapes as a less harmful alternative”.

She says the key is getting consumers who use disposable vapes ”not to go back to smoking now because of the ban”.

For months, shops have been working to get their stock of disposable vapes reduced, as Golden describes the ban penalties as “severe”.

Zac Sherratt
BBC News South East

Image source, Getty Images

There has been an increase in youth vaping in recent years, with a quarter of 11 to 15-year-olds admitting they had tried it, despite it being illegal to sell them to people under 18, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.

Dr Jack Jacobs, a GP in Hamstreet, Kent, says vaping is a particular problem for young and developing lungs.

"The health concerns are all very documented now - it can cause damage to lungs and high doses of nicotine can potentially lead to heart arrhythmia," he tells me.

"I think the ban sends a message about the dangers and will help to limit the variety available."

Earlier this year, the Welsh government's Health Minister, Sarah Murphy, said children were starting secondary school already addicted to vaping.

Murphy said teachers told her that children were leaving lessons "two or three times" to vape.

Steve Reed, the UK government's environment secretary, promised that "rogue traders" who continue to sell disposable vapes to children would face "serious penalties".

Research from University College London suggests that the number of people ages 16-24 using vapes is dropping. But is that due to the ban?

Our reporters have been asking the public if they have been easing off ahead of 1 June.

Alix Hattenstone
BBC England Data Unit

In the run-up to the ban, I spent a day in Newcastle with council officers carrying out checks at high street shops.

Senior Trading Standards officer Paul Leighton and his colleagues seize illicit vapes with tank sizes greater than 2ml, a nicotine strength of more than 20mg/ml or labels without manufacturer details and health warnings.

While disposable vapes aren't illegal yet, he says the majority of illegal vapes he finds happen to be single-use.

“Vaping’s been around for quite some time now and it’s only been a significant issue for us with the emergence of disposables,” he says.

Paul believes the change in the law will help to clamp down on the illegal trade in the longer term.

He says: “Once we’ve dealt with the sell through of illegal vapes that’s probably going to be kicking around after the ban, I think the majority of retailers will find themselves with compliant stock.”

Ben King
Business reporter

The UK disposable vape market is dominated by two Chinese companies, Shenzhen iMiracle and SKE, who have released statements on switching to reusable products.

SKE called the ban a "huge challenge for the entire vape industry."

"As soon as the ban was announced, SKE moved rapidly to develop a whole new product line to comply with the letter and spirit of the law while minimizing the impact on the retail trade and to our consumers."

In recent months they've launched eight new reusable products.

iMiracle makes Elfbar and Lost Mary vapes. An Elfbar spokesperson says single-use vapes played a key role in helping adult smokers "transition from combustible cigarettes."

It "significantly expanded" its reusables line after the ban was announced. "During this time, we have seen a growing demand from adult users," it says.

Let's look back at BBC Radio 5 Live this morning, when host Nicky Campbell was asking the audience if vaping should be banned altogether.

We heard from former smokers, including Kate, who told the BBC that she thought vaping was more addictive than cigarettes.

"I thought it might be a healthier alternative and found it was highly addictive. I was a social smoker, but I couldn’t stop doing it."

Chris in Telford said his vape addiction is now worse than when he would smoke up to 40 cigarettes a day. He has vaped for eight years, and "can't put the vape down".

"With this new vape tax coming in, it’s going to cost me more, it will be the same situation as when I smoked. I think it’s far worse. I think they should be banned 100%."

He said even though he chooses a low dose of nicotine, he still craves it.

Imogen James
Live reporter

Image source, Anna Morrison

"So beyond happy they are going," Lucy from Edinburgh tells me.

The 26-year-old vaped when she was 19, thinking she "was so cool", but in reality "was struggling not to cough".

Now, she says: "The amount of littered vapes you see on the streets is disgusting. We should be able to breathe fresh air outside, not walk through a strawberry candy floss cloud a 16-year-old is blowing to make themselves look cool."

Anna Morrison, 26 from Aberdeen, has been vaping for two years. She finds it helps as an appetite suppressant.

"I’ll move over to refillable vapes but may be less likely to vape due to less accessibility," she says.

While Cameron MacIntosh, 24, from Drumnadrochit in Scotland, says it's a "good idea", he "won’t be happy about it" because he likes to use them on a night out.

He says he usually buys one for the night, and uses it until it dies: "Which in a sense is a good thing being a small disposable one as I won’t be vaping as much," he says.

He also thinks it "won't change much" because reusable vapes are still being sold and used.

Vaping is thought to be less harmful than smoking cigarettes, which contain tobacco, tar and a range of other toxic cancer-causing chemicals, and is one of the largest preventable causes of illness and death in the UK.

But because vaping may itself cause long-term damage to lungs, hearts and brains, it is only recommended for adult smokers trying to quit as part of the NHS "swap to stop" programme.

The vapour inhaled contains chemicals, and most often include the addictive substance nicotine.

"Vapes can be an effective way for adult smokers to quit - but we have always been clear that children and adult non-smokers should never vape," the Department of Health and Social Care has said.

More research is needed to fully understand the effects of vaping, but in December 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned "alarming evidence" was growing about the damage it causes.

In February 2025, the UK government said a £62m research project would track 100,000 eight to 18-year-olds for a decade to better understand the risks.

Ben King
Business reporter

Image source, Northamptonshire Police

Since disposable vapes surged in popularity after the pandemic, there has always been a big illegal market.

By one estimate, a third of all vapes sold don't meet regulations in some way - wrong tank size, wrong labelling, or too high a level of nicotine.

Illegal ones are often openly displayed on shelves.

The new measures will only ban the sale of disposable vapes - it's actually still legal to import them. In March, the government announced an extra £10m funding for Trading Standards in England to combat illicit vape and tobacco sales.

In October 2026, a new excise duty or import tax, similar to that raised on tobacco, will be introduced.

This will make it easier for government agencies to control vape imports, but it won't come into effect until late next year.

• Millions of vapes seized in illegal trade crackdown

Our experts have finished answering your questions now, thank you for reaching out!

You can scroll back to have a look at some of the answers and we'll continue to bring you thoughts and reactions from the public here, as the disposable vape ban looms. Stick with us.

Ben King
Business reporter

Shops don’t seem to be selling the refills for refillable pods. This leads to people just buying the “reusable” vapes and throwing them away each time they’re finished. Are there any parts of the law in place to stop this happening? - Eleanor

It's a really interesting perspective. I'm sure the shops have a commercial incentive to have these pods available, but I'm not aware of anything in the ban that would make them have a legal duty to do so - that would be an unusual thing to do.

If there is a shortage, that's an interesting issue.

Dominic Hughes
Health correspondent

I am unable to use my local pub any more due to the number of vapers inside blowing poison into the air. Are there any plans to ban vape use in public places? - Steve

The Tobacco and Vapes bill is currently being consulted on. There are proposals in there to start making indoor smoke-free spaces to be vape-free as well.

That would also apply to pubs, and people vaping would need to go outside.

But that's being consulted on at the moment and we don't know what will happen after that consultation is complete. It's certainly something that could potentially come up.

Ben King
Business reporter

I've seen the new products that replace disposable vapes, and they are the exact same, and the same price. What is stopping people wasting and discarding these products in the same manner that brought in the ban? - Matt in the Isle of Wight

Well, he's exactly right. Companies have been looking for ways to keep their business going as disposable vapes are very profitable.

These new vapes comply with the law.

It then comes down to consumer behaviour. Will they dispose of them or will they recycle them? We just don't know what people are going to do. I imagine a lot of people who are used to the disposable product will stick to their habits.

If that becomes a wide-spread problem then I think authorities will have to examine ways of dealing with that.

But I do know that the popularity of disposable vapes has been falling and people are waking up to the fact that they're a more expensive way of vaping than the reusable systems.

Dominic Hughes
Health correspondent

My vape uses pods that are not refillable. Will they be banned as well? - Shaun Collins, 66, Wells

This is quite technical, but my understanding is it's more about the recycling of the batteries - this is where the issue is and what causes fires and environmental damage.

My understanding is that the vapes that have replaceable or refillable pods will still be sold, because the vape itself is reusable.

It's the lithium battery that is the key thing here.

Ruby asks: Why did it take so long to ban disposable vapes and how will they enforce this law, will there be enough resources to check shops that could still be selling disposable vapes?

Richard Sloggett, founder of Future Health Research, answers this. He says the UK government has taken a pro-vaping stance to get people off smoking for a long time. But here's also been a huge rise in young people taking it up as more became available on the market.

It's a really interesting challenge, as one in three vapes is illegal, Sloggett says. It's also a challenge for Trading Standards and whether they have enough resources to crack down on the law change.

Ben King
Business reporter

Are businesses getting around the ban by creating similar products with a charging port, and can the government can get around this loophole? - Charlie in London

This is one of the big questions about how the ban will work, we don't know yet whether people will continue to carry on buying these similar products and throwing them away.

We'll have to wait a few months to see how it's working.

It's worth mentioning that the manufacturers will say the products are an effective way to end smoking and that the overall sales of disposable vapes have been falling.

Ben King
Business reporter

Can I still use single-use vapes for personal use if we have bought these prior to the ban coming into effect? - Anonymous

It's a simple answer - yes.

Dominic Hughes
Health correspondent

We're answering your questions now. Let's go over some of them:

Alex asks: How will ex-smokers be able to get vapes? Will they be available on the NHS?

They will not be available on the NHS - users have to buy them, but not disposable ones.

There is other support available though.

• More information can be found on the NHS website, external