The government has committed to banning the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under the age of 16 years (that is, children aged 15 years and under).
The Department of Health and Social Care is consulting to understand views on the action we propose taking and how we propose enforcing the ban. We would like to understand the impact of our proposals on people and businesses, including any impacts they might have on groups with protected characteristics.
Please read the consultation document before responding to these questions, as this provides further information on the proposals. We have also published a consultation stage impact assessment which sets out our provisional assessment of the impact of the proposals on children, retailers, manufacturers of high-caffeine energy drinks, vending machine businesses, enforcement authorities and the health and care sector.
You will have the opportunity to upload up to 3 relevant files at the end of the consultation questions to supplement your answers or to provide information for us to consider in our final impact assessment.
If you have any questions about the consultation, you can email us at energydrinksconsultation@dhsc.gov.uk.
This consultation closes at 11:59pm on 26 November 2025.