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** 4 September 2025
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UK


** Wealthier patients benefit from faster NHS waits despite national improvements (#1)
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** Japan Tobacco International to host event at Reform UK party conference (#2)
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International


** Australia: Vape shops decline in Western Australia but illicit trade continues (#3)
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Parliamentary Activity


** Written Question (#4)
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UK


** Wealthier patients benefit from faster NHS waits despite national improvements

Newly released NHS England data has revealed that people from poorer areas are waiting longer for elective care than those in more affluent neighbourhoods, despite national efforts to cut backlogs. While the overall gap in waits is relatively small, analysis shows that some hospitals and integrated care systems with strong performance records have far larger disparities between rich and poor patients.

Trusts in the East of England show the widest inequality, while the South West appears the most even. Hospitals serving largely affluent populations, such as Salisbury, South Warwickshire and St George’s, perform well for wealthier residents but less so for those from deprived communities. Trusts attribute this to the greater complexity of care needs, higher rates of missed appointments and barriers such as cost, childcare and digital exclusion among deprived groups.

Some organisations have introduced initiatives to address these differences, including predictive systems to identify patients at risk of missing appointments, women’s health hubs, and expanded outreach and home-based services. However, researchers stress that a lack of transparency over how hospitals prioritise patients means inequalities remain obscured, and more targeted strategies are needed to close the gap.

Source: Health Service Journal, 4 September 2025
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** Japan Tobacco International to host event at Reform UK party conference

Reform UK is holding its party conference at Birmingham’s NEC, drawing more than 12,000 attendees, corporate sponsors and international observers. Nigel Farage will deliver the keynote speech, supported by senior party figures and appearances from former Conservative heavyweights Michael Gove and Jacob Rees-Mogg.

The conference has drawn sponsorship and participation from major firms, including Heathrow, TikTok and construction interests. Fringe sessions will feature libertarian thinktanks, climate change sceptics and diplomatic representatives. The conference will also feature an event with tobacco firm Japan Tobacco International, on the topic of reviving Britain’s high streets.

Source: The Guardian, 4 September 2025

Editorial note: This article has been included to provide insight into industry developments and lobbying. See ASH’s briefing ([link removed]) on the tobacco industry and their tactics for more information.

See also: Tobacco Tactics – Japan Tobacco International ([link removed])
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International


** Australia: Vape shops decline in Western Australia but illicit trade continues

Research published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health has revealed that specialist vape retailers have almost disappeared from Western Australia following laws that limited legal sales to pharmacies. The study found that more than half of the state’s dedicated stores had closed, with many others abandoning vape sales entirely.

Despite this decline, Terry Slevin, chief executive of the Public Health Association of Australia explains that vapes still appear in convenience stores and online. Public health experts warn that the illicit market undermines regulations, normalises vaping among young people, and continues to expose them to harmful products. Convenience stores in Perth were still caught selling vapes months after the laws took effect.

Source: Australian Associated Press, 3 September 2025
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Parliamentary Activity


** Written Question

Asked by Andrew Rosindell, Romford, Conservative

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the efficacy of enforcement provisions in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, in the context of the recent BBC investigation into the illicit tobacco market.

Answered by Dame Diana Johnson, Minister of State for Policing and Crime Prevention, Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham, Labour

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will strengthen enforcement and crack down on rogue retailers selling illegal and unregulated tobacco and vape products to children and young people. The Bill introduces new £200 fixed penalty notices in England and Wales for certain tobacco and vape offences, including underage sales, and enables the introduction of a retail licensing scheme in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and a new registration scheme for tobacco, vape and nicotine products sold on the UK market.

Alongside the Bill, we are investing £30 million of new funding for enforcement agencies in 2025/26, including Trading Standards, HMRC and Border Force. This funding is being used to support the enforcement of illicit and underage tobacco and vape sales in England, and the implementation of the measures in the Bill.
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** Source: Hansard, 3 September 2025
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ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.

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