New Zealand has disclosed in a proposal released today that it plans to ban young people from buying cigarette.
New Zealand Associate Minister of Health Ayesha Verrall said in a statement that sale or supply of smoked tobacco products to young people will become a sin so as to ensure that young people
never start smoking.
By 2027, people from aged 14 and under will not be allowed to purchase cigarette in the Pacific country of five million.
New Zealand’s government said it will consult with a Maori health task force in the coming months before introducing legislation into parliament in June next year and by the end of 2022, it will become a law. The restrictions would then be rolled out in stages from 2024, beginning with a sharp reduction in the number of authorised sellers, followed by reduced nicotine requirements in 2025 and the creation of the smoke-free generation from 2027.
However, a lobby group for local convenience stores, known in New Zealand as dairies, said while it supported a smoke-free country, the government’s plan would destroy many businesses.
The country’s government added that smoking kills about 5,000 people a year in New Zealand, making it one of the country’s top causes of preventable death. Four in five smokers started before age 18.
Currently, 11.6% of all New Zealanders aged over 15 smoke, a proportion that hangs around 29% among indigenous Maori adults, according to government figures.
