UK consults on plain vape names and packaging to curb youth use

The UK government and devolved governments have launched a consultation aimed at stripping back the features that make vapes more appealing to children, with plans to force simpler flavour names, plain packaging and muted device colours. The proposals would also keep vapes out of sight in shops, putting the way nicotine products are presented to young people directly in ministers’ sights.

Under the consultation, flavour names would have to use simple, recognisable descriptions rather than branding that evokes sweets or fruit desserts. Packaging would be limited to white, with controls on text colour, imagery, branding and standardised product information, while vape devices themselves would be restricted to white, black or grey. The idea is to reduce the visual cues that can make a product look playful or fashionable rather than medicinal or adult-oriented.

The proposals sit inside the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, which received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026 and gives ministers new powers over vape flavours, packaging, display and other product standards. The wider law also opens the door to bans on vape advertising, sponsorship and vending machines, as well as limits on free distribution and promotional discounting. It gives government powers to pursue retailer licensing and, subject to consultation, vape-free places in certain outdoor settings.

Ministers are framing the move as a child-protection measure, not a blanket attack on vaping. Government evidence cited in the consultation says children are drawn to fruit and sweet flavours, and that this is feeding youth vaping. In an earlier consultation response, the government said the number of children using vapes had tripled in the past three years, even as public health bodies continued to recognise that vapes can help adult smokers quit.

The Local Government Association has highlighted the act’s reach into outdoor smoke-free and vape-free areas, as councils prepare for a regime that would depend on enforcement as much as design rules. The policy question now is whether plain names and stripped-down packaging will curb take-up among children, or whether companies will simply shift to new branding cues that stay within the letter of the rules.