TD hits out at number of vape shops 'targeting children'

The HSE carried out fewer than 650 tests in shops over the last two years to ensure they are not selling vapes to children.

The HSE has carried out fewer than 650 tests in shops across the country in the last two years to ensure that they are not selling vapes to children.

New figures, provided to Aontú TD Paul Lawless, also confirmed one fifth of shops failed “test purchases”.

The Government has repeatedly cracked down on vapes, most recently restricting flavours, designs, displays, and advertising, under laws that came into effect last month.

Single-use vapes were banned in July.

Under the Public Health (Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Act 2023, “test purchases” can be conducted by authorities.

This involves sending a person who is at least 15 but under 18 years old into a premises to try to buy tobacco or nicotine-inhaling products.

New data obtained from the HSE by Mr Lawless confirmed that 629 test purchases were carried out in 2024, 2025, and the first half of 2026.

Some counties had no tests carried out at all in some years.

Test purchases

The first number of test purchases was in Dublin, where 131 tests were carried out in the two-and-a-half-year period. Some 82 occurred in Cork during the same time frame.

There were no tests carried out in Longford in 2024. In Leitrim, no test purchases were carried out in 2025 or in the first half of 2026.

In the first six months of this year, no test purchases had been done in Carlow, Donegal, Kilkenny, Leitrim, Monaghan, Roscommon, Sligo, Waterford, or Wexford.

The number of tests that are being conducted, however, is increasing year on year. There were 223 tests conducted in 2024, rising to 230 in 2025. Some 176 tests were carried out in the first six months of this year.

Some 126 shops (20%) were found to be non-compliant in the two-and-a-half-year period. This included 33 premises in Dublin and 19 in Cork.

The HSE further advised Mr Lawless that two licences have been suspended by the District Court so far this year.

This includes a case in Cork where a District Court judge suspended a licence for seven days following prosecution proceedings initiated by the HSE in relation to the sale of tobacco or vapes to children.

Another licence was suspended in Mayo for seven days for the same offence.

Since August 2026, all retailers have been required to hold a licence to sell the products.

The HSE’s National Environmental Health Service said that it was aware of 287 retailers that had not completed the licence application process.

'Very small penalties'

Mr Lawless said he was “very concerned” about the proliferation of vape shops across the country, arguing that many appear to target children with “bright colours, lights, and words like ‘candy’”.

“I think it’s shocking that the HSE are inspecting so few shops, imposing very small penalties for non-compliance, and blatantly allowing these companies to add to the addiction problem we have among our youth in this country,” he said.

“There needs to be a proper Dáil debate about this issue and a far stronger enforcement of the law.

“There needs to be much more transparency brought to this industry and criminal prosecutions brought against people or companies selling addictive drugs to children under the guise of a nicotine vape shop.”