Key Summary
- Anyone born after Jan 2009 will never legally be able to buy cigarettes.
- Aims to cut smoking-related deaths and protect young people from starting.
- Vapes not banned, but stricter rules planned to reduce youth appeal.
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill has become law after it was granted Royal Assent on Wednesday (29) making it illegal to sell tobacco to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009.
The bill raises the legal age for buying tobacco by one year, every year, and this would mean the affected age groups face a lifetime ban.
It is expected to break the cycle of addiction and deliver a step towards a smoke-free UK, protect people from the harms of tobacco, and ease pressure on Britain's health system.
Smoking is one the major causes of preventable deaths in the UK killing nearly 80,000 people annually.
One in 10 children aged between 10 and 15 years in the country have already experienced smoking, which was how many of the fatal smoking stories began earlier.
England’s chief medical officer Sir Charles Whitty said, “Smoking causes serious harm across the life course and remains a major cause of diseases including lung diseases, heart disease, stroke, bad pregnancy outcomes and premature death.”
He also warned that second-hand smoke is extremely dangerous, “particularly for children, pregnant women and people with medical conditions.”
Health secretary Wes Streeting said, “For too long, smoking has claimed lives, widened inequalities and placed avoidable pressure on our health services.
“This law changes that trajectory - protecting young people from ever starting, while backing current smokers with the support they need to quit for good.”
The chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), Hazel Cheeseman, said, "The genius of this policy is that it starts small, but gains impact over time." It could prevent many deaths over decades, she added.
The public health charity has been pushing for tougher tobacco controls.
The tobacco ban does not cover vapes, but the law gives ministers wide powers to regulate flavours, packaging, product names and point-of-sale displays, measures the government says are intended to deter under-18s and non-smokers.
The government had last year banned the sale of single-use or disposable vapes over concerns about youth use and environmental damage.
According to ASH, around 10 percent of adults in Great Britain - an estimated 5.5 million people - use vapes, with levels broadly unchanged since 2024, suggesting growth has begun to plateau.
About half of people who vape are former smokers, while around 40 percent continue to smoke alongside vaping, the charity said.
Through these measures, the government aims to make smoking, vaping and using tobacco products unattractive for teens.
