Proposed UK smoking ban would see those born in or after 2009 from being able to legally buy cigarettes

The UK is on track to make it illegal for some from ever being able to legally buy cigarettes. Some think it’s terrible, but there is a good reason for Australia to adopt it too.

The party of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill - who loved a cigar or two - is on track to introduce the toughest smoking laws in the world.

This week a bill introduced by the Conservatives passed in the House of Commons that will stop anyone born in or after 2009 from ever being able to legally buy cigarettes in the UK.

If the bill becomes law, the age of sale will be raised by one year each year, meaning eventually cigarettes will be illegal to buy for everyone.

It sounds like a no-brainer. Why would any government allow the sale of a product that kills two thirds of its long-term users, not to mention the cost to the health system?

If that’s not enough to convince you, then listen to the three quarters of long term smokers who say they wished they had never started.

However, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s plan to create the first smoke-free generation has not gone down well with members of his own party who say it should be up to the individual to decide whether they choose to smoke or not - not the “nanny state”.

Winston Churchill used to smoke. Picture: Getty

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson bizarrely cited Churchill’s love of cigars as a reason why the idea was “nuts”.

Others said it would be a nightmare to police, or that the ban was irrelevant as young people vape, not smoke, although the bill will also ban disposable vapes.

Kemi Badenoch, touted as a future leader of the Conservatives, perhaps made the best argument against it when she said she could not support legislation where “people born a day apart will have permanently different rights”. It’s a crazy thought, but the line has to be drawn somewhere.

With tobacco use increasing again among Australian teens, after years of steady decline, Australia’s Health Minister Mark Butler said he is following what is happening in the UK with interest.

Having never been a smoker, I’d back a similar ban here.

My only concern is if it was a real success they would turn on alcohol next. And as a connoisseur of pinot grigio, I’d have serious objections to that one.

Originally published as Proposed UK smoking ban would see those born in or after 2009 from being able to legally buy cigarettes