British e-liquid manufacturer Riot Labs endorsed tougher restrictions on youth access to vaping products while urging the UK government to rethink proposed packaging and display rules, arguing that treating vapes like cigarettes could reinforce the misconception that the products carry similar health risks, saying the government is dressing “the cure like the disease.”
As an alternative, the company said it would support limiting general retailers to selling only plain-packaged, tobacco-flavored vapes kept behind closed cabinets, while voluntarily confining its own flavored products to licensed, adult-only specialist vape shops once the retail licensing framework under the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 is implemented. Riot said the approach would reduce youth access while preserving adult smokers’ access to flavored products and specialist advice, contending that restricting distribution — not simply standardizing packaging — would better balance public health objectives with tobacco harm reduction.
