UK Prime Minister Proposes Gradual Increase in Legal Smoking Age

According to a report by the American Broadcasting Company on October 4th, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak proposed at the Conservative Party conference that the legal age for purchasing cigarettes in England should increase by one year annually, until it is deemed illegal throughout the entire population, with the aim of preventing young people from engaging in such behavior.

Sunaq unveiled his plan at the annual Conservative Party conference, expressing his desire to prevent young people from smoking from the outset. Currently, selling cigarettes or tobacco products to anyone under the age of 18 is considered illegal across the UK. According to Sunaq's office, with this incremental change, children aged 14 and below will be unable to legally purchase cigarettes in England this year.

If the proposal is approved by Parliament, this legal amendment will only apply to England, while it will not apply to Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.

People start smoking at a young age. Before the age of 20, a quarter of smokers have already started smoking. If we can break this cycle, if we can prevent this initiation, then we will pave the way to end the leading causes of preventable death and disease in our country," Su Nake said.

The British government has stated that smoking will not be criminalized, and this phased change implies that those who can legally purchase cigarettes now will not be prevented from doing so in the future. Since 1970, the number of smokers in the UK has decreased by two-thirds. However, official data shows that there are still 6.4 million people (approximately 13% of the population) in the country who continue to smoke. In 2007, the UK government raised the legal age for tobacco sales from 16 to 18, which successfully reduced smoking rates among 16 to 17-year-old teenagers by 30%, according to the Sunak Office.

Health experts welcome the prime minister's plan to gradually raise the legal smoking age. Similar measures were approved in New Zealand last year.

Lion Shahab, co-director of the Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group at University College London, stated that the government's plan to introduce legislation for a "smoke-free generation" could potentially become its defining legacy. This initiative aims to correct the mistake made for over a century, wherein tobacco products were the only legally sold commodities, but if used as intended, they would lead to the premature death of over half of lifelong users.

The government plans to introduce measures to restrict the availability of e-cigarettes, according to Sunak. In the UK, it is already illegal to sell e-cigarettes to children under 18, but officials have reported a threefold increase in teenage e-cigarette use over the past three years, with more children now using e-cigarettes than smoking traditional cigarettes. The government will consider various options, including limiting flavored e-cigarettes and making adjustments to packaging and in-store display to reduce their appeal to young people.

After Sunak announced the plan, British American Tobacco immediately dropped by 1%, while the shares of Imperial Brands fell by 2.4% following Sunak's speech.