Hampshire County Council has said it has seized illegal vapes, tobacco and cigarettes worth around £17,900.
Its Trading Standards Service announced that it had seized illegal smoking products following its commitment to continue to crack down on rogue traders handling illicit products.
The council said recent operations in Andover, Totton, Aldershot and Farnborough, undertaken with the support of Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary, led to the seizure of illegal vapes, tobacco, and cigarettes with a street value of around £17,900.
In November 2023, the council revealed that over 10,500 illicit vapes with excessive liquid content were seized, with a value of £153,674.
In October 2024, the government announced that it would start banning single-use vapes in England from June 1, 2025.
The rule aims to stop the rise of young people vaping and prevent littering, especially since vapes cannot be recycled due to their lithium batteries, which have sometimes started fires and explosions in bin lorries.
Ahead of the ban, researchers from the University College London (UCL) said that the popularity of disposable e-cigarettes or vapes has fallen.
According to the research, the percentage of people aged 16-24 who mainly use disposable vapes has dropped by nearly half in the last year, from 63 per cent to 35 per cent.
