UK government letter agrees nicotine pouches are lower risk than smoking and a harm reduction tool

Key Points

• Position: officials agree pouches are lower risk than smoking and regulation should avoid pushing adults back to cigarettes

• Warning: nicotine is addictive; high strength, fast absorption and flavouring can lead to dependence, and minors should not use them

• Campaign asks: 20mg strength cap plus strong age limits and enforcement, without blanket restrictions

• Bill status and category: pouches treated as their own category under the Tobacco and Vapes Bill; under-18 sales to be illegal

• Evidence and consultation: consultations planned on flavours/ingredients/packaging/display; further research and a “living evidence map” commissioned

2Firsts,January 6, 2026 – According to Talking Retail，in correspondence with 20isPlenty campaigners, agreed nicotine pouches are both safer than cigarettes and an effective harm reduction tool, while warning of their high nicotine content.

In a response letter from the Health Secretary’s offices, officials agreed that pouches present a lower risk than smoking and must be regulated in a way that avoids driving adults back to cigarettes. 

Campaigners said ministers should back a clear 20mg strength cap, the core goal of 20isPlenty, a collaborative campaign by harm reduction advocates We Vape, Considerate Pouchers, ecigclick, Planet of the Vapes and the Snus and Nicotine Pouch Users Alliance. The groups also called for robust age limits and protection of adult access, rather than blanket restrictions treating all nicotine as if it were smoking.

While the government has not agreed to the strength limit, the letter set out positions including: 

• the Committee of Toxicity report that nicotine pouches may reduce risks to smokers and are a harm reduction tool; 
• that pouches are likely to pose lower health risks than smoking because they do not involve inhaling harmful substances produced by burning tobacco such as tar and carbon monoxide; 
• a commitment to evidence-based and proportionate public health policy; 
• recognition that oral nicotine products, including pouches, have the potential to reduce risks to smokers when used as intended; 
• that nicotine products, including pouches, are treated as their own category under the Tobacco and Vapes Bill;
•  a pledge to carefully consider restrictions to avoid unintended consequences on adult smoking rates; 
• consultations on flavours, ingredients, packaging and display; 
• further research commissioned including a “living evidence map”; and engagement with trade bodies and the retail sector.

Considerate Pouchers UK director Richard Crosby said the government accepts pouches are lower risk than smoking, sit in a separate category, and that clumsy restrictions could increase adult smoking rates. He called for a 20mg cap, strict age limits and strong enforcement, welcomed consultations on flavours, and said the campaign will continue to push for a 20mg cap.

Crosby had written to health minister Karin Smyth seeking answers on distinct regulation, a strength cap, public health campaigns and stronger enforcement. The letter highlighted that nicotine is addictive and should not be used by minors. The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will make sales to under-18s illegal. 

The bill completed its committee stage in the House of Lords in November and is awaiting report stage and third reading, expected in early 2026, before Royal Assent. The letter also referenced plans for a “smoke-free generation” that will progressively ban legal tobacco sales to anyone born on or after January 1, 2009, coming into effect from 2027.

A Department of Health and Social Care correspondence officer wrote that pouches are likely to pose lower health risks than smoking for the reasons cited, but that high nicotine content, fast absorption and flavouring potential can lead to nicotine dependence, with young people more susceptible due to brain development, and said the government is concerned about rising use among young people, particularly young men. 

The officer added that the Department plans to consult on regulations as soon as possible next year and continues engaging with trade bodies and the retail sector. The letter stated research and evidence on harms and use of nicotine pouches as a cessation aid is currently limited, cited the Committee of Toxicity report, and said the Department has commissioned further research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, including a living evidence map.

Image source: Talking Retail