E-cigarettes are set to be banned in enclosed public places where children are likely to be present under landmark public health legislation from the Welsh assembly.

The Labour-led government wants to outlaw vaping in Wales in areas ranging from schools and colleges to restaurants, shops, cinemas and sports grounds.

It has argued that the use of e-cigarettes risks normalising smoking for children – but opponents claim a ban could discourage smokers from switching to vaping to try to kick the habit.

Members of the Welsh assembly will vote on the public health (Wales) bill, which includes e-cigarette restrictions, on Wednesday. A ban would be a UK first.

The health and social services minister, Mark Drakeford, said: “The bill will help us to respond to a range of public health threats in Wales, including the risk of re-normalising smoking for a generation of children and young people who have grown up in largely smoke-free environments.

“The bill does not prevent the use of e-cigarettes to help people stop smoking if they believe they will help them. Wherever you can smoke a cigarette, you will be able to use an e-cigarette.

“It is the government’s responsibility to create the conditions which enable people to live healthy lives. This bill strikes a balance between those actions, which will make a big difference to people’s health without intruding unduly on the rights of individuals to run their own lives.”

Labour holds 30 of the assembly’s 60 seats and is likely to get enough support from political rivals to win.

But there is still huge political opposition. Before the vote, Kirsty Williams, leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, said there was a “large body of evidence” that the “ill-thought out ban” would do more harm than good.

Tory assembly member Darren Millar said: “Introducing this ban would be a huge step backwards for smoking cessation. Labour ministers are totally misguided in their war on e-cigarettes and these measures will potentially undermine public health rather than improve it. We should be giving people a helping hand to quit smoking, not placing obstacles in their way.”

Experts are split. The British Medical Association in Wales is supportive but some experts have expressed concern.

Suzanne Cass, chief executive of ASH Wales Cymru, said: “It is important that Welsh government balances the benefits that e-cigarettes can have to help people quit smoking and the appropriateness of their use in public places in continuing to allow cessation. We do not wish for non-smokers to take up vaping but, overriding this, e-cigarettes are a cessation tool which could help smokers quit. We do not want would-be quitters to be deterred from using e-cigarettes.

“E-cigarettes are still a relatively new technology and must be monitored. We will continue to review the evidence on e-cigarettes and their effect on public health.”

Dr Ian Lewis, director of research and policy at Tenovus Cancer Care, said: “Lung cancer is the biggest cancer killer in Wales. We know that a large majority of these cases are linked to smoking cigarettes and other tobacco products, yet about one in five people in Wales still smoke. These rates are even higher in some of the poorer areas of Wales, which is driving huge inequalities in a range of diseases including heart disease and cancer.

“In our work to support people to quit smoking we have seen electronic cigarettes being used as a highly effective way of stopping and reducing tobacco use. We remain concerned that people using electronic cigarettes as a quitting aid are going to be forced to use traditional smoking areas which will risk them returning to smoking tobacco.

“We are also concerned that the narrative around e-cigarettes in Wales that has been created by this legislation may have compounded the growing misconception amongst the public that e-cigarettes are as harmful as cigarettes, and we are concerned that this will dissuade current smokers in Wales from making the switch to a product that all available evidence shows is far less harmful.”



The bill’s provisions include restrictions on the use of nicotine-inhaling devices, such as e-cigarettes, in certain public places where children and young people are present. These places are the enclosed and substantially enclosed areas of:

Schools and further education colleges.

Places where food is served.

Premises which provide childcare.

Public and school transport vehicles and public transport facilities.

Shops (except specialist tobacconists), shopping centres and markets.

Hospitals and hospital car parks.

Healthcare premises including GP surgeries.

Entertainment venues, including theatres, cinemas, amusement parks, zoos, museums, soft play centres and petting farms.

Public libraries and the National Library of Wales.

Sports grounds and centres.

Youth detention accommodation.

The provisions also restrict the use of nicotine inhaling devices in public playgrounds, school grounds and hospital grounds.

However, the bill includes exemptions where nicotine-inhaling devices, including e-cigarettes, can be used. These are:

Specialist retailers of nicotine-inhaling devices.

Premises used as a home (except if and when used for childcare).

Pubs and bars whose licence prohibits unaccompanied children from entering.

Sex establishments.

Gambling premises.

Pharmacy consulting rooms.

Adult hospices and adult care homes.

Control of e-cigarettes is not the only element of the bill. If passed, the legislation will also create a compulsory, national licensing system for acupuncture, body piercing, electrolysis and tattooing; prohibit the intimate piercing – including tongue piercing – of under-16s in Wales; and require local authorities to prepare and publish a local toilets strategy, which includes an assessment of the need for toilets for public use and details of how that need will be met.