England

COMMENTS: The Children and Young Persons Act 1933 contains provisions relevant to tobacco sales restrictions.

COMMENTS: The Consumer Protection Act 1987 makes it an offense to fail to give information required for a specific good and sets out penalties for violations. These provisions apply to tobacco packaging and labeling requirements.

COMMENTS: The Children and Young Persons (Protection from Tobacco) Act 1991 was amended by the Health Act 2009 to grant regulatory authority to prohibit the sale of tobacco products by vending machines. The Act also prohibits the sale of unpackaged cigarettes, among other measures.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 (Commencement) Order 2002 sets dates on which specified sections of TAPA come into force.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 (also referred to as “TAPA”) regulates tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Products (Manufacture, Presentation and Sale) (Safety) Regulations 2002 regulate packaging and labeling of tobacco products. These regulations were revoked by the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 (Commencement No. 3) (Amendment and Transitional Provisions) Order 2003 sets dates on which specified sections of TAPA come into force.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 (Commencement No. 6) Order 2003 sets dates on which specified sections of TAPA come into force.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 (Commencement No. 7) Order 2004 sets dates on which specified sections of TAPA come into force.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Point of Sale) Regulations 2004 have been repealed by the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) (England) Regulations 2010.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Specialist Tobacconists) Regulations 2004 have been repealed by the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Specialist Tobacconists) (England) Regulations 2010.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Brandsharing) Regulations 2004 prohibit brandsharing (brand stretching) and reverse brandsharing and set forth a few very limited exceptions to the ban.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 (Commencement No. 9) Order 2006 sets the effective date of the remaining TAPA provisions that have not yet entered into force.

COMMENTS: Tobacco Advertising and Promotion 2002 etc. (Amendment) Regulations 2006 amends TAPA to include provisions specifically addressing information society services, such as the internet.

COMMENTS: The Health Act 2006 governs many aspects of public health, including tobacco control. With respect to tobacco control, the Act regulates smoking in public places, workplaces, and public transport.

COMMENTS: The Smoke-free (Vehicle Operators and Penalty Notices) Regulations 2007 regulate smoking in enclosed public vehicles.

COMMENTS: The Smoke-free (Penalties and Discounted Amounts) Regulations 2007 set penalties for smoking violations.

COMMENTS: The Smoke-free (Premises and Enforcement) Regulations 2006 define “enclosed” and “substantially enclosed” and set out the authority of enforcement authorities.

COMMENTS: The Smoke-free (Exemptions and Vehicles) Regulations 2007 set forth exemptions to the ban on smoking and define “enclosed vehicle.”

COMMENTS: The Children and Young Persons (Sale of Tobacco etc.) Order 2007 increased the legal age of sale of tobacco from 16 to 18.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Products (Manufacture, Presentation and Sale) (Safety) (Amendment) Regulations 2007 amends the 2002 regulations on packaging and labeling to require picture warnings on the back surface of the pack and to extend the requirements to tobacco products supplied for consumption in other European Economic Area (EEA) states. These regulations were revoked by the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016.

COMMENTS: The Air Navigation Order 2009 regulates air navigation and, among other things, requires no-smoking signs in aircraft where smoking is prohibited.

COMMENTS: The Audiovisual Media Services (Product Placement) Regulations 2010 prohibit product placement in UK-made TV and on-demand programs of any tobacco product, including electronic or smokeless cigarettes, tobacco accessories such as lighters, and cigarette papers or pipes intended for smoking.

COMMENTS: The UK Code of Broadcast Advertising was issued by the Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice (BCAP) and prohibits tobacco advertising on broadcast media regulated by Ofcom (TV, radio, and mobile phones). Only an excerpt of the Code - Section 10 - is uploaded here. For the full Code, please see the link to the official website.

COMMENTS: The Ofcom Broadcasting Code regulates, among other things, the unpaid depiction of tobacco products and smoking on broadcast media. See Rule 1.10. Only an excerpt of the Code - Section 1 - is uploaded here. For the full Code, please see the link to the official website.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display and Specialist Tobacconist) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2011 amends the date on which the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) (England) Regulations 2010 and the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Specialist Tobacconists) (England) Regulations 2010 come into effect.

COMMENTS: The Health Act 2009, among other things, amends TAPA to authorize regulations to: prohibit tobacco product display at retail shops, restrict product displays on websites, and prohibit tobacco vending machines.

COMMENTS: The Protection from Tobacco (Sales from Vending Machines) (England) Regulations 2010 ban the use of tobacco vending machines beginning October 2011.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display of Prices) (England) Regulations 2010 set out the requirements for tobacco price lists.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) (England) Regulations 2010 ban the display and visibility of tobacco products in most retail stores.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display and Specialist Tobacconists) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012 make several amendments to the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) (England) Regulations 2010 and the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Specialist Tobacconists) (England) Regulations 2010.

COMMENTS: Regulations 51 and 52 of Part 5 of The Human Medicines Regulations 2012, as amended, provide the application process to register e-cigarettes and other inhaled nicotine-containing products as medicines. 

COMMENTS: The Smoke-free (Signs) Regulations 2012 set out requirements for no-smoking signs.

Note: This law has not been reviewed by our legal staff and was not relied upon for purposes of our analysis. We are providing it here for informational purposes only.

COMMENTS: The Nicotine Inhaling Products (Age of Sale and Proxy Purchasing) Regulations 2015 make it an offense to sell e-cigarettes to persons under 18 and for an adult to purchase e-cigarettes on behalf of persons under 18. The version uploaded includes amendments through December 31, 2020.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Specialist Tobacconists) (England) Regulations 2010 set out the requirements for advertisements and display within specialist tobacconist shops.

COMMENTS: The Smoke-free (Vehicle Operators and Penalty Notices) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 amend the Smoke-free (Vehicle Operators and Penalty Notices) Regulations 2007 in light of the ban on smoking in private vehicles in which children under the age of 18 are present.

COMMENTS: The Smoke-free (Private Vehicles) Regulations 2015 prohibit smoking in private vehicles in which children under the age of 18 are present.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 transpose many of the provisions of Directive 2014/40/EU (Tobacco Products Directive), including the requirements of health warnings to be placed on tobacco product packaging; regulated contents; reporting requirements; and restrictions on e-cigarettes.

These regulations have been amended by the Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 and the Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020.

COMMENTS: Directive 2014/40/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of April 3, 2014 requires Member States, among other things, to require combined picture and text health warnings occupying 65% of the front and back of all tobacco product packaging. The requirements of the directive were transposed via the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016. This directive is referenced specifically in the regulations, particularly with regard to the contents of the health warnings as provided in the annexes to the directive.

COMMENTS: The Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015 require plain packaging for packages of cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco produced on or after May 20, 2016. Products produced before that date were permitted to be sold until May 20, 2017. The regulations specify standard color, shape, material, permitted text, and other elements of tobacco product packaging.

COMMENTS: EU Commission Implementing Regulation 2018/574 provide technical standards for the establishment and operation of a traceability system for tobacco products.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 amend a number of legislative provisions as a result of the withdrawal of the UK from the European Union. The amendments include provisions regulating advertising and promotion, packaging and labeling, and flavors. The amendments entered into force on "exit day" - January 31, 2020.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 amend the Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 to address issues that arose under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland. Under the Protocol. Northern Ireland will remain aligned with a limited set of EU rules. Most amendments entered into force immediately before 'Implementation Period completion day" - which was established as December 31, 2020.