Health leaders call for Tobacco and Vapes Bill to be passed swiftly

More than 1,200 public health leaders have called for the Tobacco and Vapes Bill to progress quickly through the final parliamentary stages to “protect future generations”.

In a cross-party letter, health leaders said the “game-changing” measures outlined in the Bill are “far too important to let it slip off the parliamentary agenda”.

Peers in the House of Lords are preparing to scrutinise the Bill on the first day of its committee stage.

The letter highlights that there was a six-month gap between the Bill’s second reading and Monday’s debate.

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'Urgently needed'

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will prevent anyone born on or after January 1 2009 from legally smoking if it becomes law.

It also includes powers to potentially restrict the packaging, marketing and flavours of e-cigarettes.

The letter, signed by more than 1,200 health professionals including doctors, nurses and public health directors, stressed that the Bill is “urgently needed”.

It says that since the Bill’s introduction to the Commons last November “more than 120,000 young adults aged 18–25 have started smoking, and children continue to be exposed to irresponsible vape marketing”.

It also warns that without “swift action” that harm will continue, adding that smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death in the UK, linked to more than 70,000 deaths each year.

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'Deadly addiction' 

Hazel Cheeseman, chief executive of public health charity Action on Smoking and Health (Ash), said: “Every week, thousands of young people become trapped in a cycle of deadly addiction that will shorten their lives.

“Tobacco is a uniquely harmful product, killing more than half of long-term users. Politicians can protect future generations by passing this truly game-changing legislation.”

Dr Ian Walker, Cancer Research UK’s executive director of policy and information, warned that smoking remains the leading cause of cancer in the UK and the Bill “is an historic opportunity to change this”.

Dr Charmaine Griffiths, chief executive at the British Heart Foundation, added that smoking is linked to as many as 18,000 deaths from heart disease every year.

She said: “The Tobacco and Vapes Bill is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to protect the next generation from the dangers of tobacco, so we’re urging parliamentarians to help get this legislation enshrined in law as quickly as possible.”

Health mission 

Sarah Woolnough, chief executive at The King’s Fund, described the potential ban on smoking as a “world-leading measure that sits at the heart of the Government’s health mission”.

She said: “Until recently, the creation of a society free from the harms of tobacco would have felt like a pipe dream but now it is within ministers’ grasp.

”Smoking has devastating consequences for people’s lives, drives health inequalities and places huge costs on health and social care services.

“The game-changing measures in this Bill are far too important to let it slip off the parliamentary agenda. I and many others urge ministers to press ahead with what is likely to be one of their most positive and far-reaching actions in government.”

The latest figures show 11.9% of adults in the UK smoke, the equivalent of about six million people.

Peter Roderick, spokesperson for addiction for the Association of Directors of Public Health, said the Bill is an “opportunity to save even more lives, protect future generations from becoming addicted to this lethal product, and give freedom to live a healthier life to the 88% of people who don’t smoke”.

A survey by smokers’ rights group Forest of more than 2,000 adults found 58% would support an alternative to a generational ban on smoking, a quarter would keep the legal age of tobacco sales at 18 while a third said it should be increased to 21.