Publication - Progress report

Tobacco and vaping framework implementation plan 2023-2025: progress update

Published: 3 December 2025
From: Minister for Public Health and Women's Health
Directorate: Population Health Directorate
Topic: Health and social care
ISBN: 9781806435098

The Tobacco and Vaping Framework (“the Framework”), published in November 2023, set out our ambition to create a tobacco-free generation by 2034. This update provides an overview of progress on the actions set out in the 2023 to 2025 implementation plan.

Supporting documents

People Update

Information

2023-2025 Action	Progress
We will work to improve the information around vapes and increase awareness of avenues for support for stopping smoking or vaping.	This work is ongoing and is being driven across health boards and local authorities. Up-to-date information on vapes is available from NHS Inform, Young Scot and third sector partners. It also forms one strand of the Curriculum for Excellence Health and Wellbeing Guidance in our schools. The Nicotine Prevention Toolkit, launched in the Scottish Borders in May, is a great example of innovative, young person-led work in this area. We have continued to work with the Children’s Parliament and Young Scot to ensure that evidence-based information is available for children and young people to access. Work on resources available to teachers continues and we are participating in the Substance Use in Schools working group. Updated guidance to support schools is currently in development.
We will run and evaluate a marketing campaign on the dangers of vaping in November 2023.	Our Take Hold campaign was successful, with information reused as part of 2024 January cessation campaign. Resources from the campaign are available on NHS Inform.

2023-2025 Action

Progress

We will work to improve the information around vapes and increase awareness of avenues for support for stopping smoking or vaping.

This work is ongoing and is being driven across health boards and local authorities. Up-to-date information on vapes is available from NHS Inform, Young Scot and third sector partners. It also forms one strand of the Curriculum for Excellence Health and Wellbeing Guidance in our schools.

The Nicotine Prevention Toolkit, launched in the Scottish Borders in May, is a great example of innovative, young person-led work in this area.

We have continued to work with the Children’s Parliament and Young Scot to ensure that evidence-based information is available for children and young people to access.

Work on resources available to teachers continues and we are participating in the Substance Use in Schools working group. Updated guidance to support schools is currently in development.

We will run and evaluate a marketing campaign on the dangers of vaping in November 2023.

Our Take Hold campaign was successful, with information reused as part of 2024 January cessation campaign.

Resources from the campaign are available on NHS Inform.

Engagement

2023-2025 Action	Progress
We will work with the UK Government and the Devolved Governments and Administrations on 4-nation approaches.	Work on the development of the Smoke Free Generation Consultation, published in October 2023, and the 4-nation Tobacco and Vapes Bill is progressing through the House of Lords. This collaboration across the four nations will reduce smoking rates across the UK as well as protect children and young people from the harms of nicotine vaping products.
We will continue to work with our public health stakeholders over awareness raising and support. This includes Community Pharmacies, Smoking Cessation Services, Public Health Scotland (PHS), academics, third sector and voluntary organisations.	This work is ongoing, and we welcome the continued support of stakeholders across Scotland. Community Pharmacy smoking cessation services are offered by all pharmacies delivering NHS services across Scotland.

2023-2025 Action

Progress

We will work with the UK Government and the Devolved Governments and Administrations on 4-nation approaches.

Work on the development of the Smoke Free Generation Consultation, published in October 2023, and the 4-nation Tobacco and Vapes Bill is progressing through the House of Lords.

This collaboration across the four nations will reduce smoking rates across the UK as well as protect children and young people from the harms of nicotine vaping products.

We will continue to work with our public health stakeholders over awareness raising and support. This includes Community Pharmacies, Smoking Cessation Services, Public Health Scotland (PHS), academics, third sector and voluntary organisations.

This work is ongoing, and we welcome the continued support of stakeholders across Scotland.

Community Pharmacy smoking cessation services are offered by all pharmacies delivering NHS services across Scotland.

Cessation

2023-2025 Action	Progress
We will work to implement the recommendations from the PHS rapid review of smoking cessation services, including pregnancy support.	A Prevention Public Health Action Team has been established to implement the recommendations. The joint work between PHS, Scottish Government and territorial Health Boards has been crucial. There have been two sequential years of improvement in quit attempts through smoking cessation services in Scotland for the first time in over a decade. This is a marked change in a long-term trend (see below). Varenicline is now available for prescription and starting to be used by services and is helping smokers quit. Inequalities in smoking continue to narrow. More needs to be done nationally and locally to tackle smoking but it is important to recognise the important progress that has been made. PHS have also established a Tobacco Dependency in Pregnancy working group which works across government and stakeholders.
We will continue to support, promote and review the Pharmacy cessation January campaign.	The Quit Your Way pharmacy poster campaign ran in January 2024. Although there was no formal evaluation of the campaign in 2025, Quit Your Way posters are still used in many Community Pharmacies across Scotland.
We will continue to promote the Quit Your Way approach to Cessation in Scotland.	PHS launched a media campaign on Quit Your Way Scotland in Spring 2024, which was distributed through social media and radio. We continue to see an improvement in smoking cessation rates across Scotland supported by Quit Your Way. The latest figures for 2024/25 published by Public Health Scotland (in October 2025) show an increase in the total number of quit attempts (31,095, up from 30,317 in 2023/24 and 29,961 in 2022/23).

2023-2025 Action

Progress

We will work to implement the recommendations from the PHS rapid review of smoking cessation services, including pregnancy support.

A Prevention Public Health Action Team has been established to implement the recommendations.

The joint work between PHS, Scottish Government and territorial Health Boards has been crucial. There have been two sequential years of improvement in quit attempts through smoking cessation services in Scotland for the first time in over a decade. This is a marked change in a long-term trend (see below). Varenicline is now available for prescription and starting to be used by services and is helping smokers quit. Inequalities in smoking continue to narrow. More needs to be done nationally and locally to tackle smoking but it is important to recognise the important progress that has been made.

PHS have also established a Tobacco Dependency in Pregnancy working group which works across government and stakeholders.

We will continue to support, promote and review the Pharmacy cessation January campaign.

The Quit Your Way pharmacy poster campaign ran in January 2024. Although there was no formal evaluation of the campaign in 2025, Quit Your Way posters are still used in many Community Pharmacies across Scotland.

We will continue to promote the Quit Your Way approach to Cessation in Scotland.

PHS launched a media campaign on Quit Your Way Scotland in Spring 2024, which was distributed through social media and radio.

We continue to see an improvement in smoking cessation rates across Scotland supported by Quit Your Way.

The latest figures for 2024/25 published by Public Health Scotland (in October 2025) show an increase in the total number of quit attempts (31,095, up from 30,317 in 2023/24 and 29,961 in 2022/23).

Contact

Email: Tobaccocontrolteam@gov.scot

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