We Vape
This page was last edited on at
We Vape states that it “aims to bring together vapers from across the UK to raise the voice of our community and to shape the public debate”.1 It has lobbied against regulations relating to e-cigarettes, and other newer nicotine and tobacco products.
We Vape is run by Mark Oates, whose consultancy has received payments from the tobacco company-funded Consumer Choice Center.
Background
We Vape was set up as a UK limited company in 2020.2 It has lobbied against the regulation of e-cigarettes. Companies House records show Mark Oates is the sole Director of We Vape, which has one employee.2
Oates also runs another UK registered company, the Snus & Nicotine Pouch Users Alliance. See below for details.
For both these companies, the nature of the business is described as “Activities of political organisations”.2
Oates is also the director of a consultancy company registered in the UK, Oates Consulting Ltd.3
Relationship with the Tobacco Industry
Oates is a Fellow at the Adam Smith Institute (ASI),4 a think tank with a history of accepting funding and working closely with the tobacco industry.
We Vape
When it was set up, We Vape did not have a funding statement on its website.5 Since 2022, it has stated that it is funded by “donations from individual vaping consumers”.67 During a We Vape-run activity in 2026, Oates said “I am extremely grateful for the support provided by the Consumer Choice Centre in our mission to eradicate smoking.”8
Oates Consulting
In 2023, the US-based Consumer Choice Center (CCC), which has received funding from tobacco companies, paid Oates Consulting over US$300,000.9 In 2024, CCC paid Oates Consulting a further US$522,000.10
Snus & Nicotine Pouch Users Alliance
Oates is also listed as sole director of another company, the Snus & Nicotine Pouch Users Alliance (SNPUA).1112 According to its website, SNPUA was set up by Oates in 2018.1314 Its original .org.uk website was registered in 2022,15 and a new .co.uk website in July 2026.1316
CCC also set up the World Vapers’ Alliance (WVA, launched in 2020) and Considerate Pouchers (2023).17 Considerate Pouchers has stated that it was “supported by” SNPUA.181920 For more on these products and tobacco company interests see Snus and Nicotine Pouches.
Activities
Campaigned Against Regulation
UK
We Vape has campaigned against multiple aspects of UK regulation, including the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which became law in April 2026:
- E-cigarette flavours: Since 2023, We Vape has run a campaign on its website and on social media called “Save Flavours” urging readers to write to their MPs and engage in government consultations]2122 WVA, has run a similar ‘Save Flavours’ campaign. See World Vapers’ Alliance for details.
In November 2024, after the Tobacco and Vapes Bill was introduced in parliament, We Vape published findings from market research it had commissioned, focusing on flavour restrictions and predictions of illicit purchasing (raising the threat of illicit trade is a common industry tactic).2324 In early December 2024, Oates urged retailers to respond to House of Commons Public Bill Committee’s call for written evidence.2526 - Disposable products: In June 2025, Oates criticised the new UK ban on single-use e-cigarettes, calling it “a colossal failure” and arguing that the UK government would not be ready to enforce regulations under the Tobacco and Vapes Bill.27
- Heated tobacco products: In January 2026, We Vape submitted evidence to a government consultation on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill. It argued that restrictions on e-cigarettes could prompt people to switch back to smoking, and criticised the inclusion of heated tobacco products (HTPs), given “their significantly lower harm profile”.28
- Smoke-free places: In February 2026, We Vape urged retailers and consumers to respond to the consultation on proposals to extend smoke-free laws to outdoor public places.2930
- Plain packaging and point of sale displays: At the Reform party conference in September 2026, where the lanyards were sponsored by BAT and its Omni programme,3132
We Vape had a prominent stall at the entrance to the venue, in the design of a convenience store.833 Display materials criticised “nanny state” policies,8 and flyers designed to look like till receipts urged attendees to respond to the UK government consultation on plain packaging.31 Material also referred to other products not covered by the Tobacco and Vapes Act, including alcohol, sugar and junk food.831 The Mirror newspaper reported that there was “no branding or attribution to any group listed on the stall or on its literature.”8
The Adam Smith Institute also held an event at the stall, called “Reception for Liberty”.3435
See also below for details of We Vape’s presence at previous party conferences.
Scotland
In February 2021 a video conference roundtable meeting was organised by Holyrood Magazine about the role e-cigarettes could play in meeting Scotland’s target of a tobacco free generation by 2034. The meeting was attended by MSPs Donald Cameron (Conservatives), Emma Harper (SNP), Richard Lyle (SNP) and Brian Whittle (Conservatives).36 Mark Oates was also present. In his speech Oates highlighted the cost of smoking, and suggested that “vaping can put £2,000 – £3,000 a year into some of the poorest people in the UK’s pockets.”37
In June 2022, an investigation by The Ferret revealed We Vape had engaged with MessageSpace, a London-based public relations firm, to help them develop a lobbying campaign. The campaign, called #TellNicola, targeted a Scottish Government consultation which ran between February and April 2022 and focused on the introduction of rules that could limit e-cigarette advertising and promotion.38 MessageSpace managed Facebook adverts encouraging people to oppose any restrictions and respond to the consultation.38 MessageSpace had been used in 2014 for an anti-plain packaging campaign launched by Forest. For more information, see industry funded third party campaigns against plain packaging.
We Vape also hired a mobile billboard in Edinburgh as part of the the #TellNicola campaign. The advertisement read: “Tell Nicola to back vaping in Scotland. Vaping is safer than smoking.” In a campaign video to promote the event, Oates said the Scottish government’s proposals would “have a detrimental effect on the number of smokers who quit through vaping.”39
Wales
We Vape encouraged people to respond to the Welsh Government’s consultation on the “Tobacco control strategy for Wales and delivery plan”, which ran between November 2021 and March 2022. We Vape urged people to “inform them of the benefits of vaping and other harm reduction products.”40
Lobbying around COP
In 2021, a few months before the 9th Conference of the Parties to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), We Vape launched the #BackVapingSaveLives campaign to lobby the UK Government to support e-cigarettes on the “international stage” and ensure “harm reduction is front and centre to the FCTC and COP9 process”.41 The We Vape campaign launch event took place in July 2021 and among the speakers was Martin Cullip from the New Nicotine Alliance speaking on “how the UK can lead the world in embracing safer alternatives to smoking at COP9.”41 #BackVapingSaveLives included a postcard campaign, targeting British officials.41
We Vape also contributed to a report published by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Vaping in July 2021, titled “Inquiry into UK Tobacco Harm Reduction Opportunities Post-Brexit: Achieving a Smoke-Free 2030”. One of the report’s recommendations was that:
“2) The DHSC should fully embrace the concept of tobacco harm reduction both domestically in the Tobacco Control Plan, as well as internationally at the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Conference of the Parties 9 (FCTC COP9) later this year.”42
The report also said that the UK should “consider its options in relation to future funding” for the WHO and the FCTC, should the consensus at COP 9 on newer nicotine and tobacco products be contrary to domestic policy.42
In November 2021, during the week of COP 9, We Vape organised a protest outside the UK Parliament which featured a mobile billboard bearing the slogan “COP 9 A COP OUT” and “BORIS BACK VAPING AT COP 9”.43 Mark Pawsey, who set up and is Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Vaping attended the rally.43 For more information, see Interference around COP 9 & MOP 2.
We Vape was also active around COP 10 and COP 11
Presence at party conferences
See above for details of the We Vape stall at the 2026 Reform party conference.
In October 2023, We Vape and SNPUA campaigned together with WVA and Considerate Pouchers during the UK Conservative Party Conference.4445
In October 2021, a fringe event was held at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester titled “The Golden Opportunity: How Britain can embrace tobacco harm reduction”.46 It was organised by the Adam Smith Institute in in partnership with Japan Tobacco International (JTI), and included panellists from the Institute of Economic Affairs (which also has financial links to the tobacco industry) and JTI, as well as Mark Oates.46 During the event Oates argued that smokers weren’t switching to newer nicotine and tobacco products because they were unaware of their potential benefits.47
A virtual New Statesman event titled ‘How does England go smoke-free by 2030?’ was run alongside the Labour Party Conference in 2020. Philip Morris International (PMI) sponsored the event, which featured Mark Oates alongside Moira Gilchrist from PMI and Alex Norris MP, then Shadow Minister for Health and Social Care.48
Relevant Link
- We Vape website