The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on e-cigarette and tobacco use in the UK

The COVID-19 pandemic led to strict lockdowns in the UK throughout 2020 and 2021, which impacted both access to tobacco-related services (e.g., Stop Smoking Services) as well as retail outlets (e.g., Vape Shops). Further, it is likely that the presence of a potentially deadly respiratory virus will have influenced smokers and vapers views on their product use. This talk will use data from the Smoking Toolkit Study as well the HEBECO study to assess the impact of the pandemic on e-cigarette and tobacco use in the UK, in terms of prevalence of use, attitudes, quitting activities, and support provided to smokers. It will argue that the pandemic has slowed down the decline in smoking prevalence, underlining the need for more action in relation to harm reduction to achieve the 2030 ‘smokefree’ target.