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** 19 December 2025
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UK


** Smoking rates fall in Wiltshire as council promotes quitting support (#1)
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** International
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** EU health chief claims nicotine alternatives are not safer than cigarettes (#2)
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** Russia moves towards compulsory labelling system for e-cigarettes (#3)
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** Study highlights indoor pollution from residual tobacco smoke (#4)
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** Parliamentary activity
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** Written answers (#5)
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** Links of the Week
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** ASH Blog: Does the Smokefree Generation really break EU Law? Industry vs evidence (#6)
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** NEW ASH report shows major expansion of local stop smoking services (#7)
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** ASH Blog: Are tobacco and nicotine product sales falling? (#8)
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** ASH Blog: My reflections from a Public Affairs Internship at ASH (#9)
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** The King’s Fund and CLES essay: Integrated care systems and strategic authorities: Coming together to tackle health inequalities and the wider determinants of health (#10)
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UK


** Smoking rates fall in Wiltshire as council promotes quitting support

Smoking in Wiltshire has continued to decline, with the proportion of adult smokers falling to 8.4% in 2025, down from 10.6% the previous year, according to data from the Office of National Statistics. Wiltshire Council says this progress puts the county on track towards its target of reducing smoking prevalence to below 5% by 2029. Councillor Clare Cape credits a range of stop-smoking support, including GP advice, the Smokefree Wiltshire app and access to nicotine aids such as patches and vapes.

Source: Rayo, 19 December 2025
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** International
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** EU health chief claims nicotine alternatives are not safer than cigarettes

The EU’s Health Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi has claimed that alternative “tobacco products”, such as vapes, nicotine pouches and heated tobacco, are not safer than traditional cigarettes. The European Commission is compiling a scientific review, with significant input from the World Health Organisation, alongside its own assessment, ahead of a major report planned for 2026.

Source: Euractiv, 19 December 2025

Editorial note: Nicotine and tobacco products exist on a spectrum of harm, with combustible tobacco at one end and medicinal nicotine at the other (see RCP 2024, p15 ([link removed]) ). The evidence is clear that using a nicotine vape is much less harmful than smoking in the short and medium term. However, vapes are not risk-free and their long-term health impact is unknown – though they are likely to be far less harmful than smoking. The 2022 OHID evidence review ([link removed]) of vaping found that people who vape are exposed to significantly lower levels of harmful substances linked to cancer, respiratory and cardiovascular conditions than people who smoke. Vapes are also a proven stop smoking aid. See the ASH need to know
([link removed]) on vaping for more info.

Nicotine pouches ([link removed]) are likely to be much less harmful than smoking, however further independent research is needed on their health impacts and effectiveness for smoking cessation.

While it is possible that heated tobacco ([link removed]) products expose users to fewer toxins than cigarettes, all tobacco products are harmful to health and heated tobacco products contain many of the same harmful chemicals as combustible tobacco.
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** Russia moves towards compulsory labelling system for e-cigarettes

Russian authorities are planning to introduce compulsory product labelling for electronic cigarettes and other reusable nicotine devices as part of tighter market oversight. Under the proposal, manufacturers and distributors would need to enrol in a state-run monitoring system and apply official labels to eligible products from April 2026, with a short transition period allowing unmarked items to remain on sale until early June. The measures follow an ongoing pilot scheme and are intended to strengthen regulatory control.

Source: 2Firsts, 18 December 2025
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** Study highlights indoor pollution from residual tobacco smoke

A study published in the journal Building and Environment has found that tobacco residues left behind after smoking – known as third hand smoke – can continue to degrade indoor air quality. Scientists observed that these residues cling to household surfaces and repeatedly leak particles and gases back into the air. The study also shows that soft furnishings and carpets can trap these substances and release them slowly, making them difficult to remove through ventilation alone.

Source: CGTN, 18 December 2025

See also: Liu Yang et al. Dynamic evolution of organic aerosols and gaseous compounds from thirdhand smoke ([link removed]) . Building and Environment. December 2025.
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** Parliamentary activity
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** Written answers

Asked by Andrew Rosindell, Conservative, Romford

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department’s policies of levels of tobacco excise taxes in Australia; and what assessment she has made of the potential relationship between trends in the level of tobacco excise taxes and (a) the size of the illicit tobacco market and (b) associated organised criminal activity.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Labour, Chipping Barnet

Australia imposes some of the highest tobacco duty rates globally with excise accounting for a significant share of retail price. In the UK, tobacco duty aims to both raise revenue and reduce harm to public health by discouraging smoking. High duty rates make tobacco less affordable and are a proven way to reduce smoking prevalence and have helped reduce the percentage of adult smokers in the UK from 26% in 2000 to 10.6% in 2024.

The illicit tobacco market is dominated by organised crime groups that make money by smuggling and selling illicit tobacco products in the UK. Strong enforcement is essential in tackling the illicit tobacco market. HM Revenue and Customs and Border Force have had illicit tobacco strategies in place since 2000. Our latest strategy, “Stubbing out the problem”, was published in January 2024. The Department continues to investigate how the illicit tobacco market is evolving, including through its compliance activity, and the extent to which that may affect overall tax receipts seen.

Whilst tobacco duty has been progressively increased over time, successive illicit tobacco strategies have proven effective in tackling the size of the illicit tobacco market, reducing the tobacco duty tax gap from 21.7% in 2005/6 to 13.8% in 2023/24.

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** Asked by Lord Kamall, Conservative

To ask His Majesty's Government what data they collect on the annual sales of handmade cigars.

Answered by Lord Livermore, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Labour

Clearance figures for tobacco products, including cigar products, can be found in HMRCs tobacco bulletin, which is available on GOV.UK.

However, HMRC does not collect sales data specifically on handmade cigars.

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** Links of the Week
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** ASH Blog: Does the Smokefree Generation really break EU Law? Industry vs evidence

In this blog, ASH Chief Executive Hazel Cheeseman discusses an expert legal opinion that concludes the smokefree generation policy complies with EU rules, despite industry claims to the contrary.

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Read Here ([link removed])


** NEW ASH report shows major expansion of local stop smoking services

ASH has published the 2025 edition of our annual local tobacco control report series: Breaking new ground. Local authority stop smoking services and wider tobacco control in England, 2025. ([link removed]) This follows yesterday’s announcement ([link removed]) on the new funding allocations for councils, which includes multi-year public health grant funding for the next 3 years. The report is based on a survey of local authorities in England with responsibility for public health carried out between August and September 2025.

The report shows an unprecedented growth in local stop smoking support across England, with 90% of councils ranking tobacco control as a high or above average priority, and 86% of councils increasing their number of stop-smoking advisors.

See also: ASH Report - Breaking new ground: Local authority stop smoking services and wider tobacco control in England, 2025 ([link removed])

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** ASH Blog: Are tobacco and nicotine product sales falling?

In this blog, ASH’s Policy and Public Affairs Manager John Waldron discusses what new data on tobacco and nicotine sales can and can’t tell us, and what it means for public health.

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** ASH Blog: My reflections from a Public Affairs Internship at ASH

In this blog, ASH’s Public Affairs Intern Halle Breed shares her experience with her Public Affairs Internship at ASH.

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Read Here ([link removed])


** The King’s Fund and CLES essay: Integrated care systems and strategic authorities: Coming together to tackle health inequalities and the wider determinants of health

This essay focuses on how integrated care systems and strategic authorities could be working together on wider determinants of health, and the key recommendations for this going forward.

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Read Here ([link removed])


** Merry Christmas from everyone at ASH

This will be the last ASH Daily News until Monday 5th January. We hope everyone has a happy Christmas and New Year!

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ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.

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