Rishi Sunak Plans to Ban Cigarettes in UK

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is planning to bring in new law to completely ban cigarettes for the next generation, reported The Guardian.

Sunak is seeking to introduce strict anti-smoking measures in the UK like that of New Zealand. Through new laws passed in 2022, New Zealand has banned selling tobacco to anyone born on or after January 1, 2009.

“We want to encourage more people to quit and meet our ambition to be smoke-free by 2030, which is why we have already taken steps to reduce smoking rates,” a British government spokesperson was quoted by Reuters.

Britain in May announced it would close a loophole that lets retailers give free samples of vapes to children in a clampdown on e-cigarettes.

Separately, councils in England and Wales in July called on the government to ban the sale of single-use vapes by 2024 on both environmental and health grounds.