A new poll by campaign group We Vape has shown that the Irish government’s decision to restrict nicotine pouches stops smokers’ access to proven harm reduction products and ignores consumer demand for better quitting tools.
The survey of 1,038 UK adults found more than 44% agree that nicotine pouches should be regulated rather than banned, while fewer than 10% (9.9) oppose their legal sale.
The results follow the Irish government’s decision to ban the sale of disposable vapes and introduce new restrictions on nicotine pouches, including a ban on sales to under-18s and tighter rules on packaging, flavours, and displays.
More than 30% (30.4) of respondents believed that stop-smoking services should recommend nicotine pouches as a quitting aid alongside vapes.
Some 56% (55.9) favoured sensible strength limits on pouches, mirroring current vape regulations and echoing We Vape’s 20isPlenty campaign – which calls for a limit of 20mg.
The poll - commissioned by We Vape and conducted by Find Out Now - showed government efforts to regulate are widely seen as a failure, with only 7% describing the approach as ‘very strong’ or ‘strong’, while 45.3% judged it ‘weak’ or ‘very weak’.
While the We Vape survey reflects the views of British adults, Ireland’s closest neighbour “provides a valuable litmus test for public sentiment on harm reduction on the Emerald Isle,” We Vape said.
Richard Crosby, UK director of Considerate Pouchers, said: “Our poll shows a clear public preference for practical harm reduction measures, not arbitrary bans.
“Ireland’s approach - rather than protecting young people with a simple over 18s policy - will penalise adult smokers using pouches to make the switch, pushing them back towards cigarettes, instead of supporting their cessation attempts.
“If Ireland is serious about cutting smoking rates, it must put workable quitting tools front and centre, not demonise and restrict them.”
“If Ireland is serious about cutting smoking rates, it must put workable quitting tools front and centre, not demonise and restrict them.”
The move to prohibition in the Republic of Ireland comes after the sale and supply of single-use vapes in Northern Ireland was banned in April 2025.
Of the latest Irish decision, We Vape founder, Mark Oates (left), said: “Unless the government of Ireland reconsiders its approach, it will learn a hard lesson through a thriving and sometimes violent black market, stagnant smoking reduction rates and worsened health outcomes for citizens.
“They should consider the evidence, consult smokers and public health experts, and put effective quitting options at the heart of policy, not further restrictions. Nicotine pouches and vaping are proven to help people stop smoking. Targetting them is madness.”
The controversy in Ireland comes as the UK government moves ahead with its own Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which will age restrict pouches, but has neglected to set strength caps, despite multiple requests from MPs.
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