Date Published:
1 January 2007 |
Minimum legal age to purchase tobacco to rise from 16 to 18 (UK)
Law effective from October 1 2007
The government is to raise the legal minimum age to purchase tobacco from
16 to 18 years old, Public Health Minister Caroline Flint announced today.
Raising the age of buying tobacco which will come into effect from 1 October
2007, will follow closely on the heels of the introduction of smokefree public
places and workplaces on 1 July 2007. A campaign to raise awareness of the
imminent change in age will be launched in the New Year.
About 9% of young people aged between 11 and 15 smoke, and government
is determined to reduce this figure further. Raising the legal age to 18 will
make it easier for retailers to spot under-age smokers and lead to a fall in
the number of teenagers who get addicted to nicotine and continue to smoke
into adulthood.
Bringing the legal age for the purchase of tobacco into line with that of
alcohol will reinforce the dangers of smoking to young people, as well as helping
retailers comply with the law. It would also bring England and Wales into line
with Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the US.
Despite the reduction in the number of underage smokers from 13%
in 1996 to 9% in 2005, tobacco is still too easy for older children
and
young people to buy. Only 23% of those under 16 who tried to buy tobacco
found it difficult to do so. Evidence shows that nearly 70% of 11
to 15 year old smokers say they buy their cigarettes from small shops such
as
newsagents and corner shops.
Public Health Minister Caroline Flint said:
" Smoking is dangerous at any age, but the younger people start, the
more likely they are to become life-long smokers and to die early. Someone
who starts
smoking aged 15 is three times more likely to die of cancer due to smoking
than someone who starts in their late twenties.
_ Buying cigarettes has been too easy for
under 16s and this is partly due to retailers selling tobacco to those under
the legal age.
_ The law change demonstrates our determination
to stop this and to reduce the number of teenagers who smoke. This, in turn,
will reduce the number of
people with preventable diseases and the incidence of health inequalities.
_ The law change also sits well with our
smokefree public spaces legislation which comes into effect from 1 July 2007,
and it shows our commitment as a
country to protecting our children."
The Government has made the law change after consulting with the public, the
retail industry, the NHS, local authorities and other stakeholders.
Paul Ramsden, Deputy Chief Executive of the Trading Standards Institute, said:
" The Trading Standards Institute supports the change to the legal age
limit on sales of tobacco. The Institute has previously called for such action
based upon the growing concerns about the health risks of smoking among children
and teenagers.
_ The Institute also believe that changing
the age of sale in line with the age limit on, for example, alcohol sales
will help eliminate confusion
among retailers.
_ Across the country, trading standards colleagues
already do an enormous amount of work to help educate and inform retailers
of their responsibilities
to comply with the law across the whole range of age-restricted products.
_ The Trading Standards Institute believe
that the change in the age of sale for tobacco, will make it more difficult
for young people to purchase
cigarettes."
And also from today, 1 January 2007, the NHS and government buildings will
become smokefree.
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