Boozers are being replaced by a wave of “dodgy shops”

Seven pubs have closed for every new local vape shop that has in the last decade, research shows.

Britain has lost nearly 1,800 pubs and bars since 2016, while the number of vape and tobacco shops rose by 245 to almost 2,200 in total, according to analysis of official figures by cross party think tank the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ).

The new figures also showed a 22 per cent rise in the number of barbers, nail salons and other beauty outlets since 2016, rising to 91 per cent when compared to 2010, while 85 per cent of local areas saw a decline in the number of pubs and bars in their communities.

Launching a new Broken High Streets inquiry, the CSJ warns that valued community assets like pubs are being replaced by a wave of “dodgy shops” that do not reflect real consumer demand.

Polling conducted by Ipsos found that almost seven in ten Britons (68 per cent) say there are too many vape shops on the high street, while 58 per cent say there are too many barber shops, and 50 per cent say there are too many nail bars.

Given the existence of three million estimated unregistered businesses, the true rise of “dodgy shops” is likely to be even higher than the official count. Analysis published last year by the Health Equity North institute found that there had been a 1,200 per cent increase in the number of vape shops in England since the mid 2010s.

Publicans and shopkeepers are under renewed pressure from rate increases, years of high inflation, duty and VAT. At the same time, legitimate businesses risk being pushed off the high street by businesses operating as fronts for money laundering, illegal working and organised crime.

One recent investigation found that 3,624 shops had illegal goods seized from them in 2024 to 25, with HMRC and Border Force seizing 1.2 billion illegal cigarettes in the same period.

In October last year, the National Crime Agency destroyed over £2.7 million of criminal tobacco, vapes and drugs being sold off the high street.

The illicit tobacco trade is estimated to cost taxpayers £1.8 billion, nine times the amount the government has invested in neighbourhood policing, worth the equivalent of recruiting over 26,000 new police officers to make our high streets safer.

Josh Nicholson, Head of Housing and Communities at the Centre for Social Justice, said Britain’s high streets were changing – but not for the better.

“The explosion of ‘dodgy shops’, shoplifting and anti-social behaviour across town and city centres points to a breakdown in community life that must urgently be addressed,” he said.

“The government must identify the gaps in powers and resources that leave these problems unresolved and ensure that the upcoming High Streets Strategy contains a plan to clean up the social breakdown wrecking our communities.”