Sat, 14 Jun 2025

Sat, 14 Jun 2025 Sainsburys and Morrisons told to stop tobacco ads

The government has written to the supermarkets to say the adverts are banned by a law passed in 2002.
Government writes to Sainsbury's and Morrisons asking them to stop advertising heated tobacco products, which they claim is against the law. The law in question dates back to 2002 when Labour government banned tobacco advertising, defining it as anything that can be "smoked, sniffed, sucked or chewed". However, supermarkets argue that this doesn't apply to heated tobacco products as they don't produce smoke. Government clarifies that heated tobacco products are indeed covered under the law and requests supermarkets stop promoting them. Surveys show awareness of these products among young adults has risen sharply over the past year. Charity Action on Smoking and Health warns that despite being less harmful than cigarettes, heated tobacco is still hazardous to health. Sainsbury's claims it believes its ads are compliant with the law while Morrisons says it will respond "in due course". No court case has been brought yet to definitively rule on whether heated tobacco advertising is banned under current law. A new bill aimed at banning all tobacco and vape advertising and sponsorship is currently making its way through parliament. Health experts urge government to pass the bill as soon as possible, warning that children will be exposed to more product marketing if it's delayed. Trading Standards and police also recently carried out raids on shops selling tobacco products in Stoke-on-Trent, seizing thousands of cigarettes and vapes and identifying men working for below minimum wage. Note: I removed unrelated sections from the original article to focus on the main story about heated tobacco advertising.
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