Tobacco and vaping framework: roadmap to 2034

7. Glossary of key terms

Article 5.3

World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) is the world's first global health treaty. Article 5.3 is a key element of the treaty. It is intended to protect public health policy from the influence of the tobacco industry. It reads: "In setting and implementing their public health policies with respect to tobacco control, Parties shall act to protect these policies from commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry in accordance with national law."

Baseline

This is the measure of smoking and vaping prevalence in Scotland that will be used to track progress for the lifetime of the Framework.

Cessation

Smoking cessation refers to activities that aim to support people who smoke to stop smoking.

CivTech

CivTech is a Scottish Government programme that brings the public, private and third sectors together to build systems in response to specific challenges. We are working with them to develop the Tobacco and Nicotine Vapour Register.

Deprivation

see SIMD

E-cigarettes

An e-cigarette is a device that allows you to inhale nicotine in a vapour rather than smoke. E-cigarettes do not burn tobacco and do not produce tar or carbon monoxide, two of the most damaging elements in tobacco smoke.

They work by heating a liquid (called an e-liquid) that typically contains nicotine, propylene glycol, vegetable glycerine, and flavourings. Using an e-cigarette is known as vaping.

Implementation plan

Our Framework will run until 2034 and will be supported by a series of two-year plans containing a list of actions that will progress through the two-year period.

Lifetime smoking

Defined in the HSBC 2022 study as those who had ever smoked a cigarette.

Nicotine Vapour Products (NVPs)

Nicotine Vapour Products (NVPs) is the name given to electronic cigarettes and all related equipment, including liquids, in Scotland.

Quintile

Quintiles are percentiles which divide a distribution into fifths, i.e., the 20th, 40th, 60th and 80th percentiles.

SIMD

The SIMD is the Scottish Government's official measure of area based measure of multiple deprivation. It is based on 37 indicators across 7 individual domains of current income, employment, housing, health, education and skills, crime and geographic access to services and telecommunications. SIMD is calculated at data zone level, enabling small pockets of deprivation to be identified. The data zones are ranked from most deprived (1) to least deprived (6505) on the overall SIMD index. The result is a comprehensive picture of relative deprivation across Scotland.

Smoke free generation

This is a UK Government policy announced in October 2023 and is subject to a current consultation. This policy aim is that children turning 14 this year or younger will never be legally sold tobacco products. This will prevent future generations from ever taking up smoking, as there is no safe age to smoke.

Smoking status

The Scottish Health Survey has four smoking status categories:

• current cigarette smoker;
• ex-regular cigarette smoker;
• never regular cigarette smoker; and
• never smoked cigarettes at all.

Information on cigar and pipe use is collected in the survey but as prevalence is low these are not considered in the definition of current smoking.

Smoking and vaping prevalence

This is level at which individuals report smoking and vaping across Scotland. It is measured through surveys and is an estimate of population wide levels of smoking and vaping.

Tobacco and NVP register

Since 1 April 2017 businesses who operate Nicotine Vapour Products businesses or retailers that sell both tobacco and Nicotine Vapour Products must be registered. This is maintained by the Scottish Government.

Tobacco free generation

Tobacco free generation is a type of endgame policy which aims to stop the use of tobacco and/or vaping products completely. This works by increasing the age of sale every year, with the objective of a generation growing up never legally allowed to buy tobacco and/or vaping products.

Vapes and vaping products

A vaping product is any device, or part of that device, which is intended to enable the inhalation of vapour, or any device intended to resemble and be operated in the same way. Although most vapours do contain nicotine there are also non-nicotine vapours now on the market. All substances intended to be vaporised in these devices (and their containers) are also vaping products.