Vaping: Why is the government giving free starter kits to smokers?

A new initiative by the government will see free vaping starter kits handed out to more than a million smokers in a bid to wean them off tobacco.

The government's move is part of a larger drive to hugely lower cigarette smoking in the UK by 2030, and will also see pregnant women offered £400 if they quit their tobacco habit.

Other measures as part of the "swap to stop" strategy include discussions on whether quit-smoking advice should be included inside packs of cigarettes and a push to crackdown on illicit tobacco.

"Up to two out of three lifelong smokers will die from smoking. Cigarettes are the only product on sale which will kill you if used correctly," Health Minister Neil O’Brien will say in a speech on Tuesday about the new measure.

"We will offer a million smokers new help to quit. We will be funding a new national ‘swap to stop’ scheme - the first of its kind in the world. We will work with councils and others to offer a million smokers across England a free vaping starter kit."

The government is also looking to crack down on the use of vapes by teenagers, who are increasingly using the products. According to gov.uk, NHS figures for 2021 showed that 9% of 11 to 15-year-old children used e-cigarettes, up from 6% in 2018.

As part of the new measures, £3 billion of funding will be allocated to tackle the issue - with an "illicit vapes enforcement squad" tasked with ensuring shops are not selling the products to people under the age of 18, and that they are kept out of the sight of children.

Where are the free vaping starter kits available?

While the government is keen to prevent non-smokers and underage people from accessing vapes, which do contain chemicals including nicotine, its new programme aims to encourage existing smokers to start vaping before eventually quitting altogether.

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The first step will see local authorities getting involved later this year, with each individual authority designing a programme they believe will work for their designated area.

The kits will be available to around one in five smokers (or around a million people), despite some health studies indicating that the long-term effects of vaping are yet to be fully understood.

Currently, it is thought the kits will be handed out via NHS stop smoking services and at community health centres to people who have requested a free vaping starter kit, but they will not be available until later in the year.