The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 (c. 36) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
Legislative passage
The legislation was passed as a private member's bill.[2]
Provisons
Under this act, the advertising of tobacco products to the public is banned in the United Kingdom, except on the premises of specialist tobacconists.[3]
The act also contained an exemption for Formula 1, to be allowed to continue tobacco sponsorship until 2006.[4]
Reception
The legislation was supported by Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation.[5]
Application
In June 2025, supermarkets Morrisons and Sainsbury's were warned by the government that advertisements for heated tobacco products could be illegal under this act. The supermarkets publicly defended their advertisements by citing the definition of a “tobacco product” in the act which is "a product consisting wholly or partly of tobacco and intended to be smoked, sniffed, sucked or chewed" and claiming that heated tobacco products are outside of this definition.[6]
See also
- Smoking in the United Kingdom
External links
- The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002, as originally enacted, from the Office of Public Sector Information.
References
- The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002, section 22(5)^
- House of Lords vetoes amendment to tobacco advertising legislation Marketing Week, 2002-01-24, retrieved 2025-09-03^
- Countdown to tobacco ad ban BBC News, 2003-02-13, retrieved 2025-09-03^
- Tobacco ads to go 'by end of year' BBC News, 2002-08-22, retrieved 2025-09-03^
- TOBACCO ADVERTISING BAN STARTS FRIDAY Local Government Chronicle, 2003-02-13, retrieved 2025-09-03^
- Levi Winchester. Sainsbury's and Morrisons issued warning to make urgent change to stores Daily Record, 2025-06-17, retrieved 2025-06-18^