Every day, thousands of Welsh people carry packs of cigarettes in their pockets. Some of them say that smoking is what helps them calm down, others are so deep in their habits that they don’t even pay too much attention to it anymore.
There’s no denying that, when used in small amounts, the nicotine in cigarettes can help distract the user from unpleasantness, i.e. anger, frustration, or even sadness; some may claim they only smoke when at a party or out with friends. However, nicotine is highly addictive, and its prolonged use can lead to serious problems.
According to experts from Vapekit, quitting smoking with the help of vapes is growing in popularity across the whole United Kingdom. On top of that, new studies are being released on a regular basis, confirming that cigarette smoke contains seven thousand toxic compounds that you won’t find in the vapour produced by electronic cigarettes.
Regardless of whether you choose to smoke cigarettes or use a vape pen, you still need to be familiar with the laws surrounding them in your country, especially if you often reach for nicotine in public.
Here’s what the situation looks like in Wales:
“Smoke-Free Wales”
If you stay on top of the latest news in the UK, you’re likely already aware of this term. Even though no drastic steps have been taken yet, the Welsh government released a draft describing the details of their long-term Tobacco Control Strategy. It’s crucial to note that, per the Welsh government statement, the new legislation only covers smoking tobacco and does not include e-cigarettes.
Then came out the consultation on the said strategy, which clearly states that the ambitious plans are to make Wales a smoke-free country by reducing the smoking prevalence rate in adults to 5% or less in just eight years from now. 2030 has been set as a sort of a “deadline” the government chose to change the situation around smoking laws in Wales.
The strategy focuses on:
- creating a smoke-free environment for future generations,
- reducing deep-rooted health inequalities in the Welsh society,
- approaching the issue using all available levers.
Other Smoke-Free Nations
While the ideas outlined above may seem quite harsh to some, Wales wouldn’t be the first country in the world to go smoke-free. In fact, countries such as New Zealand have already decided to put a complete ban on the sale of tobacco.
The ban is supposed to affect anyone born after 2008, and its objective is to prevent these future adults from being able to buy cigarettes or tobacco products. It’s all a part of the New Zealand government’s nationwide effort to eventually phase out smoking. The Kiwi’s Smokefree deadline has been set for 2025 — just three years from now.
Furthermore, other UK countries also continue to make similar commitments to creating a smoke-free society. Just like Wales, England set the year 2030 as their target for reducing the number of adults smoking cigarettes, and Scotland aims to do the same by 2034.
However, organisations such as Cancer Research UK predict that the targets will be reached neither by Wales, nor England, or Scotland. It estimates that it can take as long as 15 years to reach them, setting the estimated year for 2037.
Current Smoking and Vaping Laws in Wales
On March 1st, 2021, the Welsh government implemented changes to the Public Health (Wales) Act 2017 as well as the smoke-free Premises and Vehicles (Wales) Regulations 2020. Together, these updated documents contain sets of rules regarding the smoke-free regime in Wales. While both documents still contain the majority of the laws established back in 2007, they’ve been extended to adhere to more places in Wales.
For instance, since the introduction of March 2021 changes, locations such as hospitals, school grounds, public playgrounds, outdoor daycare centres, and child-minding settings must be kept smoke-free.
By including more public spaces on the list of places that are supposed to be free of cigarette smoke, it is possible to reduce triggers for ex-smokers and exposure to the dangers of second-hand smoke. For example, the hospital grounds are where making positive choices regarding one’s health should be widely supported. Requiring public spaces such as hospitals to be smoke-free is also beneficial for patients, visitors, and staff.
These changes do not apply to e-cigarettes. Therefore, if you were to vape on hospital or school grounds or in other public smoke-free spaces, you would not be committing an offence. Still, these places can have their own requirements in place and prohibit you from using a vape. For example, while vaping in pubs is not illegal, you may be asked to put away your e-cigarette if you start using it in a Welsh pub. It all depends on the requirements in the particular pub.
In Conclusion
As you can see, there’s a lot to be told about e-cigarettes and smoke-free laws in Wales. Some of the ideas introduced by the Welsh governments may sound quite restrictive at first, but in fact, Wales is not the first UK country, or even the first country worldwide, to aim to create a smoke-free nation or at least limit how much of its adult population smokes cigarettes.
The laws that were put into place back in 2021 apply mostly to public spaces such as hospital grounds or school grounds. The 2022 draft strategy aims to significantly reduce the number of smoking adults by focusing on the smoking prevalence rate. These laws and strategies do not apply to vaping, which may be prohibited in some public spaces or regulated by local laws.