A city centre convenience store has been ordered to close for three months following action by Wrexham Council’s Public Protection service supported by North Wales Police.
The closure order, imposed by Wrexham Magistrates, was made against Easy Shop at 24 King Street, Wrexham.
It was granted following an application to the court from Trading Standards officers who set out a catalogue of sales and seizures of illegal cigarettes over recent months.
The order means that the premises has been closed down and locked up and will remain that way until 11th May 2025.
This follows hot on the heels of similar action by the Council when Kalar Mini Market in Ruabon was closed for 3 months at the end of January.
Roger Mapleson, Trading Standards and Licensing Lead said, “The rapid rise in the use of vapes by people who have never smoked and their use by children is very concerning and it is good to see that UK and Welsh Government are progressing towards new legislation later this year that will help to control the supply of illegal vapes and tobacco and support progress towards the Welsh Government objective of a smoke free Wales by 2030.”
“The sale of illegal products in our community is of particular concern and we will not hesitate to use the legal powers we have to protect the health and wellbeing of our young people. Cheap, easily available cigarettes and rolling tobacco makes it easier for children to get hooked on a lifelong addiction to a lethal product and harder for adult smokers to quit. Cheap disposable vapes also pose a potential risk to the health of non-smoking children and the sheer volume of discarded vapes presents major environmental problems and has caused numerous fires within the waste industry.
“I welcome the result of this action with the very practical impact of closing the premises for a considerable period of time.
“This disruption not only affects the owner of the business but also the property owner who will be unable to use or rent the premises for any purpose for the next three months. We will continue to take this very effective legal action to penalise and disrupt this illegal trade.
“If you are a landlord or property agent with tenants who break the law in this way please be aware that similar action may be taken resulting in the loss of use of the premises by order of the Court.”
