Rishi Sunak is considering introducing some of the world’s toughest anti-smoking measures that would in effect ban the next generation from ever being able to buy cigarettes, the Guardian has learned.

Whitehall sources said the prime minister was looking at measures similar to those brought in by New Zealand last December. They involved steadily increasing the legal smoking age so tobacco would end up never being sold to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009.

    • Generally I agree with you, but with cigarettes you are not making the choice only for yourself. Every time you walk down the street with a cigarette in hand you are forcing other people to inhale it.

      I was born in a world without a cigarette ban in restaurants and clubs and the current situation is 1000 time more preferable imo.

          • When people do all kinds of shit at their homes it affects the surrounding neighborhood. When someone barbecues you can smell it down the street, when someone mows their lawn you hear it down the street, my neighbors were doing a lot of painting last week and I could smell that for a few days. I hate smoking as much as anyone but at a certain point you just have to deal with it.

          • Then mandate smokers to smoke in a way that doesn’t affect other people. There’s plenty of things that can be done so that non-smokers don’t have to breath in smoke and smokers can retain autonomy over their bodies. But it’s not realy about that, is it? In a world where you pass hundreds smoke spewing machines every time you walk down the street, and every city requires a huge smoke making facility running 24/7 that can turn the whole sky gray if the wind blows the wrong way, cigarette smoke is the least of your worries. What it realy is about is control over other people, taking away their choice and forcing them to conform to your way of life.

            • I have said it time and time again. Smokers should have to wear those old diving helmets, but made out of glass. That way they can smoke as much as they want and don’t bother anyone but themselves!10 years ago people called me crazy, but maybe now we are heading in that direction. :)