Our reporters hit the streets to talk to the public in our major cities across the UK about the news making the headlines this week. In this episode, we look at the ban on disposable vapes, MMR vaccines, and Sunday trading hours.
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00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:03 Welcome to The Verdict on the Street, the show that
00:14 listens to its audience.
00:17 We're going to take some of the hottest topics
00:19 out onto the streets of Britain to ask you
00:22 what you think of them.
00:24 In a world that seems full of experts,
00:26 sometimes it's the opinions of the people on the street
00:29 that really matter.
00:30 So, great British public, it's over to you.
00:35 We send our reporters out into a number of cities across the UK
00:38 armed only with a camera and a microphone
00:40 to ask simply, what do you think?
00:42 Here's what's coming up on this week's agenda.
00:48 Rising concern about children's health
00:49 has led the government to ban disposable vapes.
00:52 Are they right?
00:54 After a significant rise in measles cases,
00:56 is it time for vaccines to be made mandatory?
00:59 And on the high street, is it now
01:00 time to relax the Sunday trading laws?
01:03 First up then, and this week, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak
01:09 announced that disposable vapes are
01:11 set to be banned as part of plans
01:12 to tackle the rising number of people taking up vaping.
01:17 Measures will also be introduced to prevent vapes
01:19 being marketed at children and to target underage sales.
01:23 It is already illegal to sell any vapes to anyone under 18,
01:27 but disposable vapes, often sold in smaller, more colourful
01:30 packaging, are a key driver behind the alarming rise
01:33 in youth vaping, according to the government.
01:36 Announcing the plans on Monday, Mr. Sunak
01:38 said it was right that strong action was taken to stamp out
01:41 vaping in children.
01:42 Is he right?
01:43 All the disposable ones, yes.
01:47 Absolutely, get rid of them.
01:49 Get that.
01:50 Kids shouldn't be doing that.
01:52 It's bad enough being a smoker.
01:53 Kids shouldn't be doing that one at all.
01:55 That's why I agree with that, that it's
01:57 a straight hit to an adult thing at all,
02:00 because I think they're just doing it because it's
02:02 a fashion thing.
02:03 And all these wonderful flavours and everything,
02:06 it's what entices them.
02:07 But it's not good.
02:09 It's not good.
02:09 We don't have enough data to know, like 20, 30 years' data,
02:13 to know what the impact of that will be.
02:16 The number of children using vapes
02:18 has tripled in the last three years,
02:20 and there is strong government evidence
02:22 to suggest that cheap and easy-to-use disposable vapes
02:26 are partly to blame.
02:27 Their research shows that in 2023, around 69% of vapers
02:32 aged 11 to 17 in Great Britain were using disposable vapes.
02:37 That's up from 7.7% in 2021.
02:40 The government say this is extremely worrying,
02:43 given the unknown long-term health impacts
02:46 and the addictive nature of the nicotine in vapes.
02:49 They add that while vaping can play a role in helping
02:52 adult smokers quit, the NHS advises
02:55 that you shouldn't take yourself if you don't already smoke,
02:59 and children should never vape.
03:01 I was walking past a vape shop the other day,
03:04 and I really did look in there this time,
03:05 because I don't vape.
03:07 And I noticed all the bright colours,
03:09 and that would be such a pull to young people,
03:11 you know, just to entice them in.
03:14 And clearly, that is what it's designed for.
03:16 As a non-smoker as well, so I find it hard to, like,
03:19 say anything, because I don't know what it's like to really,
03:20 like, you know, to need to have a cigarette, or to need that.
03:23 And then, like, because vapes, as far as I know,
03:26 are better than having actually cigarettes.
03:30 Yeah, I suppose I think it is,
03:33 if someone really needs something,
03:35 and it's better to have that than to be smoking.
03:38 But I know there's quite a big issue
03:39 with young people vaping,
03:40 so obviously if they can't get their hands on them,
03:42 then that's for the better.
03:45 But then obviously there's the issue with them
03:48 coming from other sources,
03:49 and not necessarily being checked.
03:54 I think the government shouldn't interfere with people's lives,
03:58 because they don't interfere in other people's lives.
03:59 Like, let's say, they do all kinds of stuff,
04:01 they allow all kinds of people to do whatever they want.
04:03 So when it comes to vapes, I personally don't do it.
04:06 I do have a friend that vapes,
04:08 and they are trying to stop vaping,
04:13 but he's struggling with that.
04:14 My own thing, I personally don't like it
04:16 when I walk by somebody that's vaping,
04:19 and they don't actually consider
04:20 where that secondary smoke is going.
04:24 In England and Wales,
04:26 trading standards officers will be able to issue instant fines
04:30 of up to £100 for selling tobacco and vapes to minors.
04:34 The sales ban is supported by nearly 70% of respondents
04:39 in a public consultation on smoking and vaping,
04:42 and that included parents, teachers,
04:44 and healthcare professionals.
04:47 More health matters next,
04:53 as the Health and Safety Executive is urging parents
04:55 to make sure their children are vaccinated against measles,
04:59 following what is described as a significant rise in cases
05:02 in parts of the UK and Europe.
05:04 The virus can spread quickly between people
05:06 who are not vaccinated, and it can potentially be serious,
05:09 particularly for babies and vulnerable groups.
05:11 So is it time the vaccine was made mandatory
05:14 for children?
05:15 The UK Health Agency has declared a national incident
05:22 as measles cases rise.
05:25 Is this something that concerns you at all?
05:31 Yeah, 'cause you never know where it's gonna come from,
05:34 'cause obviously COVID-19 back in lockdown
05:38 was obviously a big problem,
05:40 so something like this would obviously cause,
05:44 would definitely cause a lot of panic.
05:46 Well, funny you should say that,
05:48 because I'm actually a medical student,
05:49 and that was one of the topics we had earlier this year.
05:52 And my views on it is that most parents
05:55 want what's best for their children,
05:57 but might not always understand what the best might be.
05:59 And I feel that a key part of vaccination programs
06:02 is to keep people educated as to what they're doing
06:05 and to be transparent about things.
06:06 And I feel like to the most part,
06:09 companies have done as well as they could or should.
06:13 I had heard that there are all sorts of illnesses
06:18 coming back around.
06:19 Is that because we didn't do enough to protect against them?
06:24 Is it because vaccines went out of fashion?
06:28 I don't know.
06:29 Now that I've heard that, yes.
06:31 I mean, I'm all vaccinated and stuff,
06:37 but yeah, that's a bit concerning for all the kids.
06:40 We didn't get told half about COVID
06:43 and what COVID injections cause,
06:46 which they have caused a lot of other things,
06:48 which isn't being brought out in the public.
06:51 So in my opinion, it would be vaccine shy.
06:55 Yeah.
06:56 Less people are getting MMR vaccine for that reason.
06:58 I suppose that's one of the reasons, yeah.
07:01 From people that I know and experience,
07:03 it's been quite a split.
07:06 There's some people that I've known
07:07 that are very pro-vaccine.
07:09 So I'm not sure as a nation
07:12 where we lay with that, to be honest.
07:15 Like, do I think it should be mandatory
07:16 in schools and things like that,
07:18 or for young children or whatever?
07:21 I'm not entirely 100% sure,
07:25 'cause I don't want to make decisions for other people.
07:28 I think people can make their own informed decisions
07:31 once they reach a certain age.
07:32 So parents should really know what's right for their child.
07:35 No, I didn't know about that.
07:36 So I was not concerned until now,
07:38 but I do have a baby nephew.
07:40 So now that you're telling me that,
07:41 it's a good consideration just to pay attention to that.
07:45 Once measles and rubella should be given at birth,
07:47 I don't care.
07:48 I won't go near anyone's kid because of this measles.
07:51 Obviously, we get shingles.
07:53 And no, I'm sorry, I'm not going through that
07:56 for no one's kid.
07:57 It's not fair on other people
07:58 to have to go through that, neither.
08:00 I haven't seen many people disagree with them.
08:02 Mainly, I've seen majority agree with them.
08:06 I've had quite a few.
08:07 I've had like five,
08:08 but I just know if it's gonna help me, it's gonna help me.
08:11 I don't see the negatives to it.
08:13 But I've had them now and haven't had any downsides to it.
08:17 And I haven't got COVID once, so that's perfect.
08:19 - Next up, businesses struggling with sales
08:27 due to the cost of living crisis
08:29 are calling on the government
08:30 to relax Sunday trading rules.
08:32 The Sunday Trading Act was brought in,
08:34 allowing small shops to open
08:35 for as long as they want on Sundays,
08:37 but a large shop over 3,000 square foot
08:40 is still only allowed to open for six hours.
08:43 The government say there are no chance to change the law,
08:46 but should they?
08:46 - Do you think Sunday trading rules should be relaxed
08:52 to allow shoppers more- - No, no!
08:55 Do not shop on Sundays.
08:56 - Why not?
08:58 - Because Sunday's the Lord's Day.
09:00 And that's the day he prescribed for us to take a break.
09:05 - So I'm Bulgarian, I come from Bulgaria.
09:07 And in East Europe, we don't have our shops closing at all.
09:11 So this is like always a cultural difference for me.
09:13 I'm used to having the shops open like always
09:16 until 10 on a Sunday.
09:18 So for me, yes and no.
09:21 It would be better for the person who's shopping,
09:23 for example.
09:24 - Yeah, if anyone's like trying to get out on a Sunday,
09:27 but they've only got like, you know,
09:30 a short amount of time out,
09:32 then that's gonna cause a lot of problems.
09:35 - People having more time off is in general
09:38 a better thing to have.
09:39 But then there's also the fact that everyone works
09:41 on a different schedule.
09:42 Sometimes you may have just come off
09:43 of an incredibly long shift
09:44 and you just wanna get a quick bite to eat on a Sunday.
09:47 So it might get a bit annoying,
09:48 but I think it's a necessary,
09:51 well, not necessarily an evil,
09:52 but something that needs to be had around
09:54 so that people actually get a break for once.
09:56 - Most shops in England and Wales
09:58 can only open for six hours on a Sunday,
10:01 but are Britons in favor of extended opening hours
10:04 across the weekend?
10:05 YouGov has been asking shoppers just that since 2019.
10:09 Pretty consistently, more than half of people
10:11 think shops should be allowed to open
10:13 for as long as they want on Sundays,
10:15 with 52% agreeing in the latest results from this month.
10:19 - For those people who have to work weekends,
10:22 I suppose it's nice for them to have a break.
10:25 But then at the same time,
10:26 places like fast food restaurants,
10:28 you don't have that option to only work till four o'clock
10:31 or five o'clock, whatever that may be,
10:34 or having a later start.
10:36 So I suppose maybe it should be relaxed
10:38 so it's fairer for everyone.
10:40 - I'm living in Ukraine,
10:41 so we don't have any basically very strict rules
10:44 about Sunday.
10:45 So I don't know, from eight, 9 a.m. in the morning
10:48 till the very late in the evening, everything is open.
10:51 But what's funny, as I studied in Poland,
10:53 so on Sunday, if you want to go buy a milk or eggs
10:57 or whatever you need, everything is closed.
10:59 So I think here in UK, basically it's very good.
11:02 I think it's the golden middle of this.
11:06 Everything is in a balance.
11:08 - No, I don't think so.
11:09 I think God meant us to have a day of rest
11:12 and that includes shop workers.
11:13 So I think we need a day of rest.
11:16 - I live way out in the sticks
11:17 and they close at like three o'clock anyway, so it's fine.
11:22 I think a lot of people have a rest.
11:24 - I mean, if shops want to stay open longer or shorter,
11:26 I think that's just down to them personally.
11:29 I think it's decent 'cause at least we get Fridays
11:31 and Saturdays full day.
11:33 That's quite nice.
11:34 Me personally, I spend my Sundays kind of just relaxing,
11:37 preparing for the next work week.
11:38 So that's all right with me.
11:39 - Every other country's open.
11:41 You go abroad and they're open long hours on a Sunday.
11:45 And why shouldn't we?
11:47 It would bring more employment in as well.
11:49 So, you know, go for it.
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