A draft law in the UK to create a "smoke-free generation" by banning smoking for anybody born after 2008 has cleared both houses of parliament. Only the king's signature remains for it to become law.
  • Technically, the new law will raise the legal age requirement in the UK for buying cigarettes, cigars or tobacco, which is currently 18, by one year in every subsequent year, starting on January 1, 2027
  • This will effectively mean that people born on or after January 1, 2009 will never be eligible to buy them
  • Retailers will face financial penalties for selling the products to those not entitled to them
  • The government will also be empowered to impose a new registration system for smoking and vaping products entering the country, seeking to improve oversight
  • The bill will expand the UK’s indoor smoking ban to a series of outdoor public spaces, for instance in children’s playgrounds, outside schools and hospitals
  • Most indoor spaces that are designated smoke-free will become vape-free as well
  • Smoking in designated areas outside pubs and bars and other hospitality settings will remain permissible
  • Smoking and vaping will remain legal in people’s homes
  • Vaping will become illegal in cars if someone under the age of 18 is inside, to match existing rules on smoking
  • Advertising for smoking and vaping products will be banned
  • People aged 18 or older will remain eligible to purchase vaping products, but some items targeted at younger consumers like disposable vapes have already been outlawed as part of the program
  • captainlezbian@lemmy.worldEnglish
    304·
    15 hours ago

    Smoking is bad, but prohibition of drugs just drives them underground and denies freedom. Bad call UK

    • Bazoogle@lemmy.worldEnglish
      7·
      13 hours ago

      I tend to agree, but if they are only making it illegal for the population that isn’t addicted, not many are going to go out of their way to get black market tobacco and become addicted. It isn’t a prohibition for those already sucked in by big tobacco, which would 100% lead to underground exchanges. But for the rest, I feel like there’s better drugs if you’re looking for a good time

      • Robust Mirror@aussie.zoneEnglish
        6·
        9 hours ago

        You underestimate the number of teens that currently smoke and number of new teens that will take up smoking even under this system.

        • Doc_Crankenstein@slrpnk.netEnglish
          21·
          6 hours ago

          Yea, people can become addicted by second hand smoke and start craving it. Anyone can just bum a cigarette off of someone else; it happens all the time in bars and social spaces where people are allowed to smoke.

          There will always be a black market for narcotics. People enjoy drugs. In this case it will just grow slowly instead of springing up to fill a void. Prohibition doesn’t work, it just pushes it under the rug.

          The real solution is having spaces where people can indulge safely (as possible for an action that is inherently harmful), there is plenty of readily available information on the effects and consequences of partaking in these spaces, and these spaces are removed enough to where they do not cause harm to those who wish to abstain. From there, let people make their own choices. It’s their life to live how they wish.

          Now, the marketing and distribution of these narcotics is called into question but those issues are intersectional with other, far greater social ills that don’t just plague the narcotics industry.