Birmingham's illegal vapes crisis laid bare

BIRMINGHAM'S vaping crisis has been laid bare after new figures revealed more than 42,000 illegal vapes were seized in the city in 2024 alone with an estimated value of nearly £500,000.

- JAMES CARTLEDGE

The figures, obtained through Freedom of Information requests by private healthcare provider Midland Health, showed Birmingham City Council confiscated 42,126 unregulated vapes last year, worth an estimated £463,386.

But the health company said the true scale of the issue was likely to be far greater, as the council was only able to provide data for 2024.

Dr Rupa Parmar, a GP and medical director of Midland Health, said he believed the figures were the "tip of the iceberg".

"It's deeply concerning that councils have seized such a vast number of illegal vapes, yet we still don't know the full scale of how many remain available to the public," he said.