Regulation and Enforcement of Tobacco, Vapes and Sunbeds
Please can you provide the following information for the period 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2026, broken down by financial year where possible. (For this request, "sunbed" means an electrically powered device designed to tan the skin by emitting ultraviolet radiation, made available for use as part of a business.) 1. Does the council hold a register, licence list or other record of businesses that (a) sell tobacco, (b) sell vapes, and (c) make sunbeds available for use? If so, how many businesses are recorded in each category, and what type of record is it? If this information is held by another body, please say which. 2. Which of the following describe how the council monitors compliance with age-of-sale or age-of-use restrictions for (a) tobacco, (b) vapes and (c) sunbeds? Please indicate all that apply: * in response to complaints * intelligence-led * routine or scheduled inspections * licensing inspections * test purchases or age-verification checks * other (please specify) How many proactive visits, inspections or test purchases were carried out for each? 3. How many complaints or reports of alleged under-age sale or use were received for each of (a) tobacco, (b) vapes and (c) sunbeds? 4. In how many of these cases did officers find evidence of a breach? 5. Where a breach was found, how many of each of the following were issued for each category: * advice or warning letter * fixed penalty notice * formal caution * prosecution * restricted premises or restricted sale order * equipment taken out of use * other (please specify) Where the answer is zero, please state "zero". Where information is not held, please state "not held". Additionally, I would welcome any additional comments your council may have? Especially as may relate to any limitations the council feels it has in regulation and enforcement, for example financial constraints.