The United Kingdom could be the first country to ban the sale of cigarettes and e-cigarettes… for an entire generation! A new law could prevent all young people born after the 1er January 2009 of smoking… and for life! For what ? I explain to you !
Smoking is very bad for your health. Tobacco is the cause of several serious illnesses, such as cancer and heart problems, and can even cause death. Cigarette addiction is very costly to society: in hospital costs, loss of working days, etc. In the United Kingdom, this cost is estimated at $83.7 billion per year. It is enormous ! And vaping, very popular among young people, is not without danger either.
Smoke-free generation
It is therefore to combat this dangerous and costly habit that the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, took action. On April 16, his government voted to ban the sale of cigarettes and e-cigarettes to young people born after April 1.er January 2009. Forever. This means that people under 15 will never be allowed to buy them!
Why target your generation? Because, according to statistics, 4 out of 5 smokers started smoking before the age of 20.
The majority of British people are for this new law. But there are still people who criticize her. Among these, we find… ministers from Rishi Sunak’s conservative government! For what ? Because conservatives are normally for individual freedoms. Ministers who are against the law believe that the government should not tell people what to do. According to them, this law also creates injustice between those who will be able to smoke (the older generations) and those who will not be able to.
Elsewhere in the world
The United Kingdom is not the first country to have had this idea. In 2022, New Zealand also wanted to forever ban the sale of cigarettes to its citizens born after 2008. But there were elections in the fall of 2023 and the new government reversed this decision.
In Australia and Mexico, smoking is prohibited in all public places.
Here, Canada will this year become the first country in the world to print anti-smoking warnings on every cigarette. The federal government has also just increased the price of packs of cigarettes. Taxes on cigarettes are very high and make smoking very expensive. Messages on the dangers of tobacco, accompanied by shocking photos, have also been printed on cigarette packets for several years.
Are there smokers around you? What do you think of this habit?
Caroline Bouffard, Les Aces de l’info
Want to know more?
Do you like to understand the news?
Come take a look at lesasdelinfo.com. We also have a whole section for teachers!
An Information Coops initiative supported by the Government of Canada.
