Proportion of people in Great Britain vaping who never smoked doubles in four years
The share of never-smokers in Great Britain who vape has nearly doubled since 2021, surpassing 1 million people.Summary
New Office for National Statistics (ONS) data shows that more than 1 million people in Great Britain now vape despite never having been regular smokers, with the proportion nearly doubling in four years. In 2025, about 5.4 million people aged 16 and above in England, Scotland and Wales (9.9%) used e-cigarettes daily or occasionally, with the highest rate among those aged 25-34 (16.4%). About 2.9% (1.1 million) of never-smokers reported vaping, up from 1.5% in 2021 and 940,000 in 2024. Health experts, including Justin Webb of London Metropolitan University, called the trend concerning, noting that while vapes can help adults quit smoking, they are not risk-free and their long-term effects are unclear. Meanwhile, smoking rates continue to decline, with fewer than one in 10 UK adults (9.8%) smoking in 2025, the lowest on record. The 25-34 age group overtook 16-24 year-olds as the most common vapers, and the largest drop in smoking was among 18-24 year-olds, from 25.7% in 2011 to 7.2% in 2025.
(Source：The Guardian)
