FOI Request - Illegal Tobacco and Vaping Products

Request 101003930397

1. For the calendar years 2023, 2024 and 2025, how many shops or other premises in your local authority area have had illegal cigarettes, tobacco or vaping products seized by your local authority (for example, by Trading Standards or other relevant teams)?

For each year, please provide figures broken down by location as follows (whichever is available within the cost limit):
a) By Lower Layer Super Output Area (LSOA); or, if LSOA figures are not held or cannot be provided within the cost limit,
b) By electoral ward; or, if that is not possible,
c) By postcode area or postcode sector.
If you are unable to provide any breakdown by LSOA, electoral ward or postcode area/sector, please provide a single total figure for the whole local authority area for each year.

2. For the calendar years 2023, 2024 and 2025, how many business premises in your area have been required to close as a result of enforcement action in relation to illegal trading in cigarettes, tobacco or vaping products?
For each year, please provide:
a) The number of premises required to close temporarily (for example, closure notices or orders, temporary licence suspensions, or other short term legal orders or notices requiring temporary closure).
b) The number of premises required to close permanently (for example, following licence revocation, long term premises closure orders, or other legal action which resulted in the business ceasing to trade at those premises).

3. For the calendar years 2023, 2024 and 2025, as a result of enforcement action by your local authority in relation to the selling of illegal cigarettes, tobacco or vaping products, please provide the following information, where you hold payment status data:
For each year:
a) The total number and total value in pounds sterling (£) of civil financial penalties and other non court financial sanctions issued directly by your authority (for example, civil penalties, fixed penalty notices and similar council issued sanctions).
b) The total number and total value in pounds sterling (£) of fines imposed by the courts following criminal prosecutions brought by, or following investigations led by, your authority in relation to illegal cigarettes, tobacco or vaping products.

For each year, please also state how many of the civil financial penalties/sanctions and court imposed fines recorded for that year are currently:
a) Paid in full.
b) Paid in part.
c) Unpaid (no payment received).
d) Unpaid and registered with, or referred to, a court or enforcement agents for enforcement or recovery.

4. For the calendar years 2023, 2024 and 2025, how many cases relating to illegal trading in cigarettes, tobacco or vaping products have been successfully prosecuted, resulting in a conviction or guilty plea in the courts, following investigations by your authority (for example, Trading Standards)?

If possible, please also provide, for each year:
a) The number of prosecutions launched; and
b) The number of those prosecutions that resulted in a conviction or guilty plea.