New tax "worrying" for East Yorkshire vape shop
The Chancellor announced a new vape tax in his Spring Budget.
Plans to put a tax on vape products might not have the effect the government is hoping for, according to an East Yorkshire vape shop.
In his Spring Budget, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced plans to introduce a vape tax from October 2026 in a bid to make vaping too expensive for young people.
The tax is expected to apply to the liquids in vapes, but the government has not yet announced how the tax will work or how much it will cost.
Jamie Lowe, who runs Gators Vape Shop with his dad Craig, said: "We sell a lot of our bottles for £3 or £4 so if they were to add another £2.50 for example, that's going to make it so pricey that people might consider going back to tobacco and think there's no point in quitting due to the price.
"It is worrying. It's all about what the customers will pay at the end of the day. If they don't want to pay that extra price because the government have put a levy on it, then it's out of our hands.
"How much business are we going to lose? Will the business be sustainable? It all depends on what price or what percentage the Chancellor comes back with."
The government had already set out plans to phase out the sale of tobacco, with children turning 15 this year or younger to never be legally sold tobacco with the age of sale being raised every year.
It also plans to ban disposable vapes around the end of 2024, and create new power to restrict vape flavours and packaging to ensure they are being marketed at children.
Jamie Lowe said: "You could crackdown on the people selling illegally to children by making fines much more hefty and getting it to a point where people think it's not worth the risk."