Highlights
- Children born after 2009 face a lifetime cigarette ban from January 2027.
- Smoking kills up to 78,000 people annually in the UK.
- Half of all lifelong smokers die earlier than non-smokers.
Lifetime ban for young buyers
Those born on or after 1 January 2009 will not be able to buy cigarettes or vapes in Britain. The restriction comes into force on 1 January 2027.
Currently anyone aged 18 and over can legally buy and smoke cigarettes in most public places across the UK.
The bill has now cleared both the Commons and Lords after months of parliamentary debate.
Health minister Baroness Merron described it as a landmark bill that will create a smoke-free generation.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the reform will save lives, ease pressure on the NHS and build a healthier Britain.
Once the bill receives royal assent, the government will also gain new powers to regulate tobacco, vaping and nicotine products including their flavours and packaging.
Where the new rules apply
Vaping will no longer be allowed in cars carrying children, in playgrounds, outside schools and at hospital entrances. These changes expand existing smoke-free laws to cover more spaces where children are present.
Vaping outside hospitals will still be permitted to support those trying to quit smoking.
Pub gardens, beaches, wider open spaces, private outdoor areas and people's homes are not covered by the new rules. People may continue smoking and vaping inside their own homes as before.
Smoking's toll on public health
Smoking kills between 74,600 and 78,000 people in the UK every year, making it the leading cause of preventable death in the country.
Around 5.3 million adults currently smoke in Britain, made up of 12.3 per cent of men and nine per cent of women, according to Action on Smoking and Health.
Lifelong smokers die on average ten years younger than non-smokers. Each cigarette is estimated to cut life expectancy by around 20 minutes.
Smoking is also the biggest cause of cancer in the world and can cause cancer almost anywhere in the body. Experts say being smoke-free can prevent 15 types of cancer.
Industry and health groups react
Conservative peer Lord Naseby acknowledged the bill would upset many in the retail industry and called for better public education around the dangers of smoking rather than outright restrictions.
Baroness Merron assured peers the government had worked closely with retailers and would continue to do so.
Sarah Sleet of Asthma + Lung UK welcomed the bill but warned that existing smokers must not be left behind.
She described the current stop-smoking support across the country as a postcode lottery and urged the government to introduce a levy on the tobacco industry to fund cessation services.
She added that with the bill now passed there is a chance to go further to protect public health and hold the tobacco industry to account.
