More than 100 retailers in Ireland have been caught selling nicotine vapes to children under 18 since it was made illegal in December 2023, new figures show.
The latest data from Ireland’s Health Service Executive (HSE) highlights the limited impact of the law so far.
The HSE’s National Environmental Health Service monitors compliance with the legislation through an annual test-purchase inspection programme. Last year, the service conducted 389 test purchase inspections. Of those, 52 were found to be ‘non-compliant’ – where at least one of these products was sold to a child.
Twelve of those cases resulted in a conviction with a fine, the number of cases in which the probation Act was applied was six and one case was struck out, withdrawn or dismissed by the court.
In the first six months of this year, 310 inspections were carried out, of which 50 were found to be non-compliant. Of the 52 non-compliant inspections found in 2024, 19 proceedings have been heard to date in the District Court.
The HSE said other proceedings were “still in train”, while proceedings relating to non-compliances identified this year are expected to be heard in 2026.
‘A law is only as strong as its enforceability’
Social Democrats TD Aidan Farrelly said: “We need to make sure the enforcement works. You can see the level of inspections in the first half of this year is almost at the same level as all of last year. But what I’m looking at is the number of non-compliances versus prosecutions.
“The numbers [of prosecutions] are very low. I understand the court system could have much more pressing issues, but a law is only as strong as its enforceability. We have to make sure retailers are complying.”
Mark Murphy, senior policy manager at the Irish Heart Foundation, warned: “It is absolutely imperative the ban on the sale of vapes to children is enforced.
“Vapes are not harm-free and evidence shows that e-cigarettes can damage the brain, heart, lungs and even blood vessels. Moreover, e-cigarettes contain nicotine, one of the most addictive substances on the planet. And medical research shows that the younger you are when you start using nicotine, the more likely you are to become addicted.”
Ireland plans to raise the legal age for cigarette sales from 18 to 21 in 2028, and Murphy says the same should apply to vapes “to protect children from ever taking up vaping.”
Last year, the Irish Government also approved bans on the manufacture or import of single-use or disposable vapes in Ireland. It will limit vape flavours, coloured packaging, descriptions, and advertising of these products in a bid to curb youth uptake.
Warning Ireland is losing focus on smoking
Last month, a leading addiction specialist warned that Ireland had lost focus on tackling smoking while intensifying efforts to restrict vaping.
Dr Garett McGovern, a GP and Medical Director at the Priority Medical Clinic in Dundrum, said the national conversation had become increasingly hostile towards vaping, even though smoking remains a far greater health threat.
In June, Irish Taoiseach (prime minister) Micheál Martin branded vaping as “evil” and “the revenge of Big Tobacco” as he called for “the strongest possible measures” to restrict its use.
