Suffolk Trading Standards seizes more than 2000 illegal vapes
The Prime Minister's announced plans to ban disposable vapes
Suffolk Trading Standards tells us it's seized over 2000 illegal nicotine vapes from shops in Ipswich.
The devices were recovered from three shops in the borough by trading standards officers checking for compliance on advice issued after previous visits.
The legal UK limit on nicotine content in disposable electronic cigarettes is no more than 2% (20mg/ml) and must not exceed 2ml in capacity (around 600 puffs), however the disposable products seized contained oversized tanks, giving between 3,500 to up to more than 10,000 puffs.
The seizures saw 964 found at one shop, 867 in the second and 176 in the third.
It comes after the Government announced yesterday (Monday January 29) that it intends to ban disposable vapes to tackle the rising number of young people taking up vaping.
It will also bring in measures to prevent vapes being marketed at children and to target underage sales, after recent figures showed the number of children using vapes in the past three years has tripled, with nearly 10% of 11- to 15-year-olds now using them.
Sasha Watson is from Suffolk Trading Standards, and told us they "welcome any restrictions that are put in place" to stop children buying vapes, as this is a big concern for them.
She also told us they receive around "10 complaints a month" of children buying age-restricted products.
Sasha explained to us they do "spot inspections" in retailers to see if they are selling illegal products.
If caught with these items, the seller or owner may be given a "written warning" or they sometimes take a more "formal" approach through "prosecution".
The sellers are asked about their "processes and due diligence" as well as where they obtained these illegal vapes: "Whatever the outcome will be going back and checking on those stores over and over again."
We're told the law should come into force early next year.