Rishi Sunak faces Tory backlash over landmark ‘smoke-free generation’ bill

The Prime Minister’s plans to once again ban young people from smoking have once again faced opposition within the party.

If the Tobacco and Vaping Bill is eventually passed into law, it will be a crime to sell tobacco products to anyone born after January 1, 2009.

This means today’s children aged 15 or younger will never be able to legally purchase cigarettes.

This plan is one of Rishi SunakHe announced three key policies at last year’s Conservative Party conference.

However, some of the more laissez-faire Conservatives have criticized the ban, meaning the prime minister may have to rely on support from the other side of the House of Commons to get the bill passed.

Opponents of the ban include Sunak’s predecessor Liz Truss, who called the plan “grossly unconservative”, and Boris Johnson, who called the move “crazy”.

Conservative MPs have been given a free vote on the bill, with some expected to oppose it when it is first fully debated in the House of Commons on Tuesday.

However, Labor will support the proposals, making it likely that the legislation will clear the first hurdle regardless of Conservative opposition.

The bill would not criminalize smoking itself, and people aged 18 or over could always buy cigarettes without legal repercussions.

However, if the elderly want to buy cigarettes in the future, they may have to bring their ID cards.

The ban is aimed at getting people to stop smoking before they start, as the government points out that smoking is highly addictive, with four out of five smokers starting before the age of 20 and remaining addicted for life.

Shops that break the rules will face on-the-spot fines – money the government says will be used to crack down further.

Earlier this year, New Zealandnew coalition government Repealed the world’s first ban Young people are able to buy cigarettes.

Britain’s biggest preventable killer

smokes It is the UK’s biggest preventable killer, killing around 80,000 people every year and causing health problems such as cancer, lung disease, heart disease and chronic bronchitis.

The Department of Health and Social Care says that in England alone, someone with a smoking-related illness is admitted to hospital almost every minute.

It is estimated that it costs the NHS and the economy an additional £17 billion a year, exceeding the £10 billion a year raised by tobacco taxes.

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Health and Social Care Secretary Victoria Atkins said the bill would “save thousands of lives”, help the NHS and boost UK productivity.

Ms Atkins said: “The truth is that there is no safe level of tobacco consumption. It is uniquely harmful, which is why we are taking this important action today to protect the next generation.”

A number of leaders have reiterated their support for the bill, including England’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty, Deborah Arnott, director of charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), and British Heart Foundation chairman Charles Dr. Main Griffiths.

Ms Arnott said: “New research published by ASH shows that the majority of tobacco retailers and the public, including smokers, support the legislation and the ambition it aims to achieve for a smoke-free generation.

“This historic legislation will consign smoking to the ‘ash heap of history.'”