Issue - meetings

The Committee resolved:-

(i)             to request that the use of acronyms be restricted in committee reports in order for reports to be easier to read and understand;

(ii)            to note the contents of the report and the Five Principles set out in the Retailers’ Charter detailed in Appendix 1;

(iii)          to approve the adoption of the Retailers’ Charter and instruct the Chief Officer – Operations and Protective Services to implement the Charter in Aberdeen City, with initial focus on Union Steet retailers; and

(iv)          to instruct the Chief Officer Operations and Protective Services to report back to the Committee in 12 months on the effectiveness of the Charter.

The Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Operations and Protective Services, which explained that intelligence and complaints received by Aberdeen City Council Trading Standards Service (TS) led officers to believe that there was a growing issue in the city, particularly on Union Street, of “proxy purchasing” of tobacco and Nicotine Vaping Products (NVP), particularly Single-Use NVP (“vapes”).

It was noted that Proxy Purchasing was a criminal offence enforced by Trading Standards, but it was very difficult to detect and prove. This Retailers’ Charter was an attempt to work with retailers to solve this problem using the Five Principles set out in Appendix 1 of the report whilst maintaining focus on existing legal responsibilities in respect of age restricted products.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)         note the contents of the report and the Five Principles set out in the Retailers’ Charter detailed in Appendix 1;

(b)         approve the adoption of the Retailers’ Charter and instruct the Chief Officer – Operations and Protective Services to implement the Charter in Aberdeen City, with initial focus on Union Steet retailers; and

(c)         instruct the Chief Officer Operations and Protective Services to report back to the Committee in 12 months on the effectiveness of the Charter.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)            to request that the use of acronyms be restricted in committee reports in order for reports to be easier to read and understand; and

(ii)          to otherwise approve the recommendations.