Speeches by Johnson.

“Q Thank you for coming today. You have been monitoring and evaluating tobacco control policy and stop smoking strategies for many years. Earlier this year, you said that you thought a variety of things could go wrong with the implementation of the tobacco and vapes legislation. We all want to see people’s health improv…”

“Q You have talked about time. Time can mean lots of different things—weeks, months, years. What sort of timeframe do you have in mind? David Fothergill: The important thing is that we have the right consultation and the right plan for bringing through new trading standards. I think we would be alarmed if you said you w…”

“Q39 Thank you, Sir Mark, and welcome to the witnesses; thank you for coming today. My first question is: do the local authorities have the resources they need to enforce these measures, if brought in? If they do not, what further resources do they need? David Fothergill: I will take that one, if I may. First, thank you…”

“Q Smoking is a huge cause of cancers. Do you expect that this Bill will reduce the number of cases of cancer and increase the age of people who get cancer across the country? Dr Ian Walker: First, thank you very much for the opportunity to be here. I start by thanking Parliament for boldly introducing this Bill; it is …”

“Q What effect do you think vapes have on the health and the lungs of young people? Do you think the Bill will help to reduce the take-up of vaping in children? Sarah Sleet: In general, there is very little evidence around vaping, and we need a really considerable effort to get the evidence in place, but we do know that…”

“Q The current advice, which was reiterated by the chief medical officer in the last session, is that if you do not vape, do not vape, but that if you smoke, vaping may be a better alternative. How will the measures in the Bill make it easier or harder for that message to be conveyed to the public who smoke? Hazel Chees…”

“Q I thank the witnesses for coming along; we are interested to hear what you have to say about this Bill. For some time, I have been particularly concerned about children vaping. How will the restrictions on vapes in this Bill, particularly on colours, flavours and accessibility, help to reduce their appeal and accessi…”

“I am an NHS consultant paediatrician and a member of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.”

“Q The Welsh Government are apparently struggling with compliance in hospital areas. What have you learned from your Welsh counterparts on how you can ensure better enforcement and compliance in England? Andrew Gwynne: That is a really important question. It is why, at every opportunity today, I have been asking those w…”

“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. [Interruption.] I am sorry—that is the last time I will get called. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Yesterday, in relation to the elective backlog, the Secretary of State said: “Where we can treat working people faster, we will, and we make no apology for doing so.”—[Official Report, 6 January 2025…”

“The Secretary of State needs to be careful with the words he uses, as you said, Mr Speaker, because his words did cause anxiety among people. It was not a disingenuous question; it was a genuine question to make sure that people are reassured. It will not have escaped the Secretary of State’s notice that it is cold out…”

“Q Thank you; that is helpful. My other question is about the difference between indoor and outdoor exposure to smoke. In this country, we have had laws preventing smoking in certain indoor spaces for many years now. How does exposure to smoke inside differ from exposure to it outside? Imagine sitting next to someone sm…”

“Q How do you think the Bill will address health inequalities? We have heard that smoking is more prevalent among poorer individuals than among richer individuals. Will the Bill help address that? Sheila Duffy: We see that socioeconomic inequalities and smoking rates are closely patterned. ASH Scotland’s work with low-i…”

“Q Thank you; that is really helpful. What about the new licensing scheme that local government needs to bring in? Do you feel you have the resources to do that? Will it give you the discretion you need in terms of the location of such sites? David Fothergill: We argued at the previous Committee hearing under the last G…”

“Wendy, do you have any thoughts— Lord Michael Bichard: Sorry, I did not hear that. The sound is not—”

“Q Then you welcome the concept of being able to say, “This is the first offence; this is an educational opportunity, rather than an opportunity for a penalty.”? Lord Michael Bichard: Do we welcome that? Yes, I do. It is our task to take a proportionate position. Some people make mistakes, and there is probably no point…”

“Q Lord Bichard, you talked at the beginning of your remarks about resources. Do you think that trading standards have enough resources to implement the regulations and enforce them? Lord Michael Bichard: I try to make it a principle of my life not to go around asking for more money from Government or the Treasury, so t…”

“Thank you, that is a really helpful answer. We know that vapes are very difficult to dispose of and to recycle.”

“Q Can I ask about staff training? Once the legislation goes through, which we expect it to do, retailers up and down the country will need to ensure that their staff are properly trained to follow the law. One of the challenges they will have—not initially, but as it goes forward—is identifying how old individuals are.…”

“Q Welcome to the Committee, and thank you for coming. I want to ask you about the approval process that vapes go through. People say, “This has MHRA approval,” or “This has an MHRA tick,” and they may therefore think it is safe because you have “medicines” in your title. Could you briefly lay out your processes for reg…”