Regulation of shops selling vape products
11 June 2026
Following the devastation of the fire at Union corner earlier this year, concerns have been raised locally about the safety and public health risk surrounding shops that sell vape products. We have raised these concerns with Glasgow City Council.
Currently councils have very limited powers; they cannot for example control where vape shops may open and there is no licensing framework to regulate the sale of vaping products. Enforcement activity is focused on prevention of under-age sales through means such as test purchasing.
We believe that councils should have greater powers to control how and where products are sold that are a potential public health risk. We have contacted the MSP for Maryhill and Kelvin to ask for further support on this issue.
We also understand that legislation has recently been passed by the UK Parliament to further regulate in this area. A ban on the advertising and sponsorship of vaping products is expected to come into force on 1 June 2027.
Hello, the key to dealing with Vape shop issues is better funding of Trading Standards via local authorities. In GCC this department has been neglected for many years and now works reactively to complaints as they do not have the resources to be proactive. By adding new posts to target trading practices and mandating joint working with the Police and Fire Service this dept could take on the burden of scheduling and leading visits, with backup when required to enforce legislation. While the law itself needs updating, current provisions would allow test purchasing and also ensuring that shops have safe storage of flammable materials. Pressure should be put on GCC to resource this critical area of service.
Thanks for your comment – we have noted your points.