U.K. pushes to create 'smokefree generation' by banning sale of cigarettes to anyone born after 2009

By Louis Goss

The U.K.'s parliament has pushed forward a new bill that would ban the sale of tobacco products to anyone born after January 1, 2009, in a bid to create a "smokefree generation" by introducing new laws that are set to become the strictest in the world.

MPs on Tuesday evening voted to further debate the Tobacco and Vapes Bill which seeks to stop tobacco products being sold to all children who turn 15 this year, even after they reach the U.K.'s legal smoking age of 18.

If passed, the new law which was introduced by Britain's Conservative Party in March, would see the U.K. adopt stricter rules on smoking than any other country in the world, with a view to creating a "smokefree generation" starting in 2027.

In explaining its rationale, the U.K. government noted tobacco use is responsible for 80,000 deaths a year, including 70% of all lung cancer deaths, and costs Britain's economy GBP17 billion per annum - even including taxes generated from the sale of cigarettes.

The new law would give authorities new powers to enforce the ban and place new restrictions on vapes, that would see the ban of disposable vapes and restrictions on flavors and packaging in order to reduce their appeal to children.

This would see authorities given an extra GBP30 million to boost enforcement and given new powers in England and Wales to serve GBP100 ($125) on-the-spot fines to shops that sell tobacco and vapes to people under the age of 18 - in addition to the GBP2,500 fines that are currently given out by courts.

The U.K.'s plans follow the New Zealand government's decision to overturn a similar law in February that would have banned the sale of tobacco products to anyone born after 2009.

New Zealand's smoking ban, which was brought in under Jacinda Ardern's Labour party was, however, repealed by the country's new Nationalist government which entered power in November 2023.

Critics of the U.K. bill, which included 58 Tory MPs who voted against the ban, hit out at the government's plans.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, U.K. business secretary Kemi Badenoch said the bill would undermine "equality under the law" and see the burden of enforcement fall on private businesses.

The U.K. government disputed claims the new rules would create a black market, as it pointed to research showing the amount of illicit cigarettes smoked fell by 25% when Britain lifted its smoking age from 16 to 18 in 2007.

-Louis Goss

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04-17-24 0750ET

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