Leeds City Council and West Yorkshire Trading Standards have joined together to combat underage vaping.
The council have reinforced that it is illegal to sell nicotine containing vapes to under 18’s.
Retailers have also been warned that they may face fines of up tp £2,500 for selling vapes to underage children.
Parents and carers are also being encouraged to have conversations with their children, warning them of the health risks.
Shelley Rowson, mother of a teenager, expressed her concern about underage vaping, “it does worry me about the long term affects of vaping, you know what’s in cigarettes’ but with vaping you don’t really know what’s in them or what the long term effects are.”
“I think there all doing it, I think its peer pressure, in their heads they probably think it’s safer than smoking, but is it?”
Schools are being provided with leaflets, posters and lessons on the effects of vaping, as well as the facts about it.
Leeds Councilor Barry Anderson said, “I think it will get a vast majority of young people to sit up, take notice and ask themselves why am I really doing it.”
“The retailers will come back with better marketing, more targeted marketing, and coming up with even more flavors That’s the thing that attracts young people to it, is the flavors that resonate with young people.”
Local residents are being asked to report any incidents of retailers illegally selling nicotine vapes to minors.
The helpline telephone number is 0808 223 1133
