Budget 2026: British shopkeepers make last-ditch plea to John Healey amid existential threat from dodgy vape shops
UK shopkeepers urge John Healey to act against illegal vape shops threatening honest businesses ahead of the Budget.Summary
Ahead of John Healey's maiden Budget, UK convenience store owners have issued a last-ditch plea, warning that dodgy vape shops are driving law-abiding Britons out of honest jobs. In a joint statement seen by GB News, store directors Natalie Lightfoot of Londis Solo Convenience in Glasgow, Trudy Davies of Woodnam & Davies News in Llanidloes, Wales, and Paul Cheema of Malcolm's in Coventry said existing structures were not enough to protect family businesses. They highlighted that while good shopkeepers check ID, pay duty and collect it, illegal shops sell illicit cigarettes and vapes at half price, describing it as "soul-destroying." The National Crime Agency suspects at least £12billion of criminal cash is generated in the UK each year, with £1billion laundered through high street businesses. The shopkeepers called on the Treasury to provide ring-fenced funding for Trading Standards to tackle illegal tobacco and vapes, and to let councils keep fines and seized cash. They also addressed rumours that Healey is considering income tax on handing down family businesses, warning it could double costs and leave families with two options: sell to a chain or shut up shop. They urged him to carve out genuine family handovers if the policy goes ahead.
(Source：GB News)
