Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending to county councils the provisions of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 on issuing closure notices in cases of illegal trading of tobacco and vaping products on the high street.

The closure power, under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, enables police or local councils - including county councils where there is no district council - to close premises quickly which are being used to commit nuisance or disorder.

The closure power, along with all the powers in the 2014 Act, is deliberately local in nature, and it is for local agencies to determine whether its use is appropriate and meets the legal test in the specific circumstances.

The global supply of illicit tobacco is significant and the high profit margins continue to attract organised criminal networks. HMRC are fully aware of this threat and take robust, coordinated action in response. Working in close partnership across government, we target production at its source, intercept illicit products at the border and in retail environments, and pursue and prosecute those involved in the illicit tobacco trade.

Stubbing out the problem: A new strategy to tackle illicit tobacco - GOV.UK sets out how HMRC, Border Force and partner agencies tackle illicit tobacco. It seeks to target loopholes at all stages of the supply chain, to keep ahead of the criminals. The strategy:

• sets out a new root and branch approach - which targets the demand for illicit trade (the consumers that criminals seek to exploit) as well as the supply (the criminals themselves).
• is supported by over £100 million new funding to boost HMRC and Border Force enforcement capability.
• establishes a new, cross-government Illicit Tobacco Taskforce – combining the operational, investigative and intelligence expertise of various agencies, and enhancing their ability to disrupt organised crime.

National Trading Standards plays a key part in tackling illicit tobacco at a local level. It provides both a visible and tangible deterrent that organised criminality and anti-social behaviour surrounding the supply of illicit tobacco will not be tolerated. HMRC values the close working partnership it has with National Trading Standards through Operation CeCe and is committed to building on its success by increasing the level of funding available to Trading Standards. This means that we can have an even greater impact in tackling the illicit tobacco trade, undertaking more visits, creating more disruption, detecting and seizing more illicit product, tackling underage sales and reducing community harm.

HMRC is progressing preparations for the 1 October 2026 introduction of Vaping Products Duty with a strong focus on compliance readiness and illicit market risk.