内容摘要："Sci-fi, certainly for me when I was younger, was always about escaping to a better place, a better world where technology is evolved, politics is evolved, people are evolved.

"Sci-fi, certainly for me when I was younger, was always about escaping to a better place, a better world where technology is evolved, politics is evolved, people are evolved.

And while it is illegal to sell vapes to anyone under 18, disposable vapes, often sold in smaller, more colourful packaging than refillable ones, have been cited as an important factor in the rise of youth vaping.Currently one in seven 18 to 24-year-olds vape but have never smoked.

Vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking but it has not been around for long enough for its long-term risks to be known, according to the NHS.The environmental impact is considerable. Single-use vapes are difficult to recycle and typically end up in landfill where their batteries can leak harmful chemicals like battery acid, lithium, and mercury into the environment, the government said.Batteries thrown into household waste also cause hundreds of

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs estimates almost five million single-use vapes were either littered or thrown into general waste each week last year.Environment minister Mary Creagh said: "For too long, single-use vapes have blighted our streets as litter and hooked our children on nicotine. That ends today.

"The government calls time on these nasty devices."

But Action on Smoking and Health chief executive Hazel Cheeseman questioned what impact the ban would have, pointing out new refillable vape kits were coming on to the market that look and cost similar to the single-use ones.In the Dyfed-Powys Police force area, ONS figures showed Powys had seen the highest increase in residential burglaries in Wales, with an 81% spike in the year to December 2024.

In Ceredigion, the ONS data showed a 60% increase in residential burglaries in the same period while Carmarthenshire saw a 50% rise.A spokesperson for Dyfed-Powys Police said: "While it is difficult to comment on the exact reason for the increase in reports of burglaries, we are aware of national reporting issues due to our transition to a new crime system in 2023 which led to the figures being more than they should be in 2024.

"Measures have been taken to correct the figures however this may not be reflected in the published ONS data."In amended figures provided by Dyfed-Powys Police, the force reported a 26% rise in residential burglaries in its area, meaning it still had the highest percentage increase in residential burglaries in Wales and England over the period.