Wales

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 regulates tobacco advertising promotion and sponsorship.

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 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 (Point of Sale) Regulations 2004 were revoked in relation to Wales by the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) (Wales) Regulations 2012.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Specialist Tobacconists) Regulations 2004 were revoked in relation to Wales by the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Specialist Tobacconists) (Wales) Regulations 2012.

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 (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 2002 etc. (Amendment) Regulations 2006 amended TAPA to include provisions specifically addressing information society services, such as the internet.

COMMENTS: These regulations were revoked by the Smoke-free Premises and Vehicles (Wales) Regulations 2020.

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

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 amended 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 EEA (European Economic Area) 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.

COMMENTS: The Health Act 2009, among other things, amended 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) (Wales) Regulations 2011 ban the sale of tobacco from vending machines throughout Wales. The regulations are available in both English and Welsh.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display of Prices) (Wales) Regulations 2012 set out the requirements for tobacco price lists. The regulations entered into force in December 2012 for large retailers and in April 2015 for small retailers and other shops.

COMMENTS: The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) (Wales) Regulations 2012 ban tobacco advertising and the display of tobacco products in retail stores. The regulations entered into force in December 2012 for large retailers and in April 2015 for small retailers and other shops, including bulk tobacconists. These regulations do not apply to specialist tobacconists.

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) (Wales) Regulations 2012 set out the requirements for advertisements and display within specialist tobacconist shops.

COMMENTS: These regulations were revoked by the Smoke-free Premises and Vehicles (Wales) Regulations 2020.

COMMENTS: The Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015 implement section 135(6) of the Children and Families Act 2014 and 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 color, shape, material, permitted text, and other elements of tobacco product packaging.

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 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.

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: 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.

COMMENTS: The Public Health (Wales) Act 2017 (anaw 2) is a comprehensive public health law regulating smoking and the sale of tobacco and nicotine products, among other public health measures. The uploaded version contains amendments through March 1, 2021.

Most of the provisions related to tobacco and nicotine products entered into force on March 1, 2021, pursuant to the Public Health (Wales) Act 2017 (Commencement No. 6) Order 2021. Provisions in Chapter 2 (Retailers of Tobacco and Nicotine Products), Chapter 3 (Prohibition on Sale of Tobacco and Nicotine Products), and Chapter 4 (Handing Over Tobacco etc. to Persons Under 18) are not yet in effect.

COMMENTS: The Smoke-free Premises and Vehicles (Wales) Regulations 2020 implement the smoke-free provisions of the Public Health (Wales) Act 2017, providing more details around definitions, exemptions, and signage.