Put down your lighter and hide your ashtrays – Rishi Sunak is apparently considering introducing some of the world’s toughest anti-smoking measures.
If implemented, the strict laws would essentially ban the next generation from having access to cigarettes in the first place.
Similar measures were introduced by New Zealand in December 2022. It is thought that these rules – which involve gradually increasing the legal smoking age so that no one born from 2009 onwards will ever be able to buy tobacco – are inspiring the PM’s own crackdown. The idea is that smoking will eventually be phased out altogether.
It comes after a review suggested that if the UK implemented the same rules by 2026, anyone aged 15 and under now will never be able to buy a cigarette. If not implemented soon enough, the report warned that the government would miss its target of becoming a smoke-free nation by 2030 by at least seven years.
Critics of the proposals argue that the move would simply drive tobacco sales underground and ‘into the hands of criminal gangs’ and wouldn’t actually stop people from smoking.
Though nothing has been confirmed or denied just yet, a government spokesman said: ‘Smoking is a deadly habit: it kills tens of thousands of people each year and places a huge burden on the NHS and the economy.
‘We want to encourage more people to quit and meet our ambition to be smoke-free by 2030, which is why we have already taken steps to reduce smoking rates.’
Let’s be honest, it was only a matter of time. The government has already announced a ban of disposable vapes amid fears that children are becoming addicted to their nicotine content. If you’re already a seasoned smoker and not quite ready to give up the cigs completely, you’ll be safe for another few years.
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