UK (Commonwealth) _ The British government on Wednesday proposed a law that would forbid children under 18 from ever purchasing cigarettes, making it one of the nations with the strictest smoking laws in the world and hurting the profits of the biggest tobacco companies.
A briefing paper stated that if approved into law, the smoking age will increase by one year each year, potentially phasing out youth smoking as early as 2040.
The idea was unveiled by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the Conservative Party conference. “A 14-year-old today will never legally be sold a cigarette,” he said. He claimed that smoking costs the British health system $20.6 billion annually and added that the government also needed to take action against youth vaping.
The briefing paper advises against regulating vape packaging and presentation and suggests restricting the flavors and descriptions of vapes. Sunak’s activities were praised by the anti-smoking organization Action on Smoking and Health, which said that they may hasten the time when smoking will no longer be tolerated.
The cigarette industry criticized the recommendations. The Tobacco Manufacturers Association claimed that they would promote illegal trade and constitute a “disproportionate attack” on the rights of adults. The statement stated that banning legal products always has negative side effects and makes it easier for criminal groups to sell unlawful goods.
The manufacturer of Winston cigarettes and Golden Virginia rolling tobacco, Imperial Brands, cautioned that the prohibition might have “unintended consequences”. British American Tobacco, the manufacturer of Lucky Strike and Dunhill, claimed the ideas would be challenging to implement. The smoking ban would have to be approved by a free vote in the British parliament. As a result, MPs are no longer required to vote in accordance with party platforms.
If adopted, Britain would join New Zealand, which unveiled a similar proposal last year, as the first nation in Europe to outlaw smoking for the benefit of future generations. According to academics, raising the smoking age has successfully lowered the rate of youth smoking throughout the world.
According to analysts, the change might harm businesses like Japan cigarette, the manufacturer of Camel and Benson & Hedges, and Imperial Brands that get a significant amount of their revenue from British cigarette sales.
The impact of the prohibition, while probably insignificant in the short term, “could gradually become material” over time, according to Owen Bennett, an analyst at Jefferies, who also noted that those in the 18–25 age group make up about 10% of adult smokers in Britain today.
Imperial Brands’ stock dropped 3.2% to its lowest level since March 2022, while BAT’s stock, which is less exposed to the British cigarette industry, was down 1.2% as of 1357 GMT.
Bennett pointed out that the risk for all businesses is that other countries imitate them. A number of countries are also aiming to reduce smoking to extremely low levels in the relatively near future, including Denmark, which is already thinking about taking a similar action.
According to APS data, there were 6.4 million current smokers in the UK in 2022, or 12.9% of the population. Although not statistically significant, this represents a drop from 2021 (13.3% of the population) and a 7.3 percentage point drop in current smokers compared to 2011 (20.2% of the population).
The Tobacco Control Plan for England’s success is tracked and monitored using the APS as the official indicator of smoking prevalence in England. By the end of 2022, the Tobacco Control Plan seeks to bring adult smoking prevalence in England down to 12% or less. With 12.7%, or 5.3 million individuals, the lowest percentage of current smokers in the UK in 2022, England. Although not statistically significant, this represents a reduction in the percentage of smokers from 2021, when it was 13.0% (or about 5.4 million individuals).
The experts predict that this move will further reduce smoking rates and one-digit rates before the end of this year.
