Parliament has given its final approval to legislation that will permanently ban anyone born on or after 1 January 2009 from ever legally purchasing cigarettes, in what health leaders are describing as the most significant public health achievement in a generation.
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill has now cleared both the Commons and the Lords, with both chambers agreeing on a final text. Once the legislation receives royal assent — the King’s formal sign-off before a bill becomes law — ministers will gain sweeping new powers to regulate tobacco, vaping and nicotine products, extending to their flavours and packaging.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the moment marked a turning point in the country’s relationship with smoking. “Children in the UK will be part of the first smoke-free generation, protected from a lifetime of addiction and harm,” he said. “Prevention is better than cure — this reform will save lives, ease pressure on the NHS, and build a healthier Britain.”
Health minister Baroness Merron, addressing the Lords on Monday, said the bill’s passage brought to a close a lengthy parliamentary journey. “It is a landmark Bill,” she said. “It will create a smoke-free generation.”
The reaction from health organisations was unanimously positive. Hazel Cheeseman, chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health, described it as “a decisive turning point for public health,” arguing that the end of smoking was now “inevitable” rather than merely aspirational. “Over the past half-century, smoking has claimed millions of lives across the UK,” she said. “Ending its harm is a lasting gift to generations ahead.”
Sarah Sleet of Asthma and Lung UK said the bill would also deliver “desperately needed” restrictions on where vaping, smoking and heated tobacco products could be used, with new protections around schools and hospitals set to come into force alongside the generational sales ban.
Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, credited decades of research and campaigning for making the legislation possible. “This is a historic achievement that will shield our children from the devastating grip of tobacco addiction and help to put an end to cancers caused by smoking,” she said. “The first smoke-free generation is now within reach.”
Smoking remains one of the leading causes of preventable death in the United Kingdom, responsible for significant levels of cancer, respiratory disease and cardiovascular illness each year.
