Tobacco and Vapes Act receives royal assent to begin Britain’s phase out of the legal sale of tobacco products to children born on or after 1 January 2009
A historic legal change to phase out the sale of cigarettes has become law in the UK today.
The Tobacco and Vapes Act includes a landmark phase out of the legal sale of tobacco products to children born on or after 1 January 2009. As the bill gained Royal Assent, research published by Cancer Research UK estimated that it will mean 13 million children alive today will never be legally sold tobacco in the UK.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “This legislation marks a turning point for the nation’s health. By ending the cycle of tobacco addiction for future generations, we are taking one of the boldest steps in decades to prevent illness before it even begins.
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“For too long, smoking has claimed lives, widened inequalities, and placed avoidable pressure on our health services. This law changes that trajectory—protecting young people from ever starting, while backing current smokers with the support they need to quit for good.”
Cancer Research said that if the legislation has the impact the government hopes then by 2040, up to 10 million fewer cigarettes will be smoked each day in the UK. It makes Britain the first major nation to outlaw the sale of tobacco products to future generations.
Michelle Mitchell, chief executive officer at Cancer Research UK, said: “This is a truly historic achievement that will help to save and improve lives. With the new law in place, we are moving towards a future where children will grow up shielded from the lifelong harms of tobacco.
“It will mean more people living a life free from the grip of deadly addiction, fewer people facing a cancer diagnosis and less pressure on an already over stretched health service.”
The UK is the first large country to implement the phasing out of the sale of tobacco products. The Maldives did so last year following similar legislation in New Zealand although the latter was later repealed.
Smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death, responsible for around 80,000 deaths a year in the UK, and is a major driver of cancer, heart disease and stroke. An estimated 800,000 people in the UK have lost their lives due to tobacco smoking in the last decade.
Government estimates suggest that under the new law, the total number of smokers aged 14 and over is estimated to fall from 5,502,164 in 2023, to 701,167 in 2056. They suggest this number will continue to fall to less than 1,000 by the turn of the next century.
The modelling also estimates that some 154,800 deaths will be prevented in England by 2100. Smoking rates among those aged 14 to 30 are estimated to fall from 11.2% in 2023, to “effectively zero” by 2050, according to the Government document assessing the impact of the policy.
Professor Sir Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England, said: “Cigarettes take choice away by addicting people and most smokers wish they had never started but are trapped. “
The Health Foundation said that in poorer communities one in every five people still smoke, compared with one in 20 in wealthier areas of England.
Every year smoking leads to over 400,000 hospital admissions in England, costing the NHS £1.8 billion a year. Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) estimates that smoking costs the economy £27.6 billion each year. Around 5.3 million people in the UK still smoke.
Charmaine Griffiths, chief executive of the British Heart Foundation, said: “This is a true landmark moment for public health. For everyone who has lost someone to a smoking related heart attack or stroke, for every clinician who has seen the toll of tobacco at the bedside, and for every young person who will now grow up free from the harms of smoking – we celebrate this historic achievement that will save lives for generations to come.”
Charities and campaigners say the wide-ranging act must now be properly enforced and support services to help people quit must be properly funded.
The bill was first introduced under the previous Conservative government when current Tory leader Kemi Badenoch strongly opposed the phased smoking ban, labelling it the “least conservative policy” of the then-government. Labour then championed the policy and brought it into law.
Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: Rishi Sunak MP said: “I’m delighted that the smoke free generation policy which was introduced to Parliament when I was Prime Minister is now on the statute book. This is not a party-political issue, as shown by the support from parliamentarians of all political persuasions.
“The bill tackles the single biggest entirely preventable cause of ill-health, disability, and death in our country. This legislation will put us on track to end smoking within a generation. It will make us a healthier country where people live longer and better lives.”