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Long title | An Act to control the advertising and promotion of tobacco products; and for connected purposes. |
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Citation | 2002 c.36 |
Territorial extent | England and Wales, Scotland & Northern Ireland [1] |
Dates | |
Royal assent | 7 November 2002 |
Text of statute as originally enacted | |
Text of the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. |
The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 (c.36) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
The legislation was passed as a private member's bill. [2]
Under this act, the advertising of tobacco products to the public is banned in the United Kingdom, except on the premises of specialist tobacconists. [3]
The act also contained an exemption for Formula 1, to be allowed to continue tobacco sponsorship until 2006. [4]
The legislation was supported by Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation. [5]
In June 2025, supermarkets Morrisons and Sainsbury's were warned by the government that advertisements for heated tobacco products could be illegal under this act. The supermarkets publicly defended their advertisements by citing the definition of a “tobacco product” in the act which is "a product consisting wholly or partly of tobacco and intended to be smoked, sniffed, sucked or chewed" and claiming that heated tobacco products are outside of this definition. [6]