Tobacco smoking in the United Kingdom is prevalent among a sizeable, but continuously reducing minority of the population. Smoking is legally permitted, with certain conditions upon location arising from the bans enacted separately in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It has been argued that smoking puts considerable strain upon the NHS due to the health problems which can be directly linked with smoking. Successive UK Governments have endeavoured to reduce the prevalence of smoking. As part of this commitment, the NHS currently offers free help to smokers who want to quit.
Video Smoking in the United Kingdom
Prevalence
As recently as 1974, 45% of the British population smoked, but this was down to 30% by the early-1990s, 21% by 2010, and 19.3% by 2013; the lowest level for eighty years. An annual No Smoking Day has occurred in March since 1984.
In 2015, it was reported smoking rates in England had fallen to just 16.9%; a record low.
Maps Smoking in the United Kingdom
Health issues
It has been estimated by Cancer Research UK that smoking is the single greatest cause of preventable illness and early death, with around 107,000 people dying in 2007 from smoking-related diseases including cancers in the UK. Around 86% of lung cancer deaths in the UK are caused by tobacco smoking and overall tobacco smoking is estimated to be responsible for more than a quarter of cancer deaths in the UK, around 43,000 deaths in 2007.
The British Medical Journal states that due to the drive to help smokers quit smoking, Britain has the world's largest reduction in the number of deaths from lung cancer. Previously in 1950, the UK had one of the highest rates in the world. The annual number of deaths from lung cancer in 2000 was half of what it was in 1965.
Reducing the prevalence of smoking to 5% could avoid nearly 100,000 new cases of smoking-related disease including 35,900 cancers over twenty years and save £67,000,000 a year in health and social care costs according to research commissioned by Cancer Research UK..
Age restrictions
England and Wales
Until 1 October 2007 the minimum age to purchase and consume tobacco products in public was 16 years of age. From 1 October 2007 the Children and Young Persons (Sale of Tobacco etc.) Order 2007 became effective, raising the minimum purchase age to 18 years of age. There is no stated age under which it is illegal to consume tobacco, although an officer has the right to confiscate tobacco if the individual concerned is in a public place and under 16.
Children and Young Persons Act 1933 - Section 7
(1) Any person who sells to a person under the age of eighteen years any tobacco or cigarette papers, whether for his own use or not, shall be liable, on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale.
(3) It shall be the duty of a constable and of a park-keeper being in uniform to seize any tobacco or cigarette papers in the possession of any person apparently under the age of sixteen years whom he finds smoking in any street or public place, and any tobacco or cigarette papers so seized shall be disposed of, if seized by a constable, in such manner as the police authority may direct, and if seized by a park-keeper, in such manner as the authority or person by whom he was appointed may direct.
Scotland
Until 30 September 2007 the minimum age to purchase and consume tobacco products in public was 16 years of age. From 30 September 2007 the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Act 2010 became effective, raising the minimum purchase, consumption and possession age to 18 years of age.
Section 4: Sale of tobacco products to persons under 18
(1) A person who sells a tobacco product or cigarette papers to a person under the age of 18 commits an offence.Section 5: Purchase of tobacco products by persons under 18
(1) A person aged 18 or over who knowingly buys or attempts to buy a tobacco product or cigarette papers on behalf of a person under the age of 18 commits an offence.
(1) A person under the age of 18 who buys or attempts to buy a tobacco product or cigarette papers commits an offence.
Section 6: Purchase of tobacco products on behalf of persons under 18
Section 7: Confiscation of tobacco products from persons under 18
(1) Where a constable has reasonable grounds for suspecting that a person in a public place--
- (a) is under the age of 18, and
- (b) is in possession of a tobacco product or cigarette papers,
the constable may require the person to surrender the tobacco product or, as the case may be, the cigarette papers to the constable.
(7) The constable may dispose of any tobacco product or cigarette papers surrendered to the constable in such manner as the constable considers appropriate. (8) In this section "public place" includes--
- (a) any place to which the public have access for the time being (whether on payment of a fee or otherwise), and
- (b) any place to which the public do not have access but to which the person mentioned in subsection (1) has unlawfully gained access.
Northern Ireland
Until 31 August 2008 the minimum age to purchase and consume tobacco products in public was 16 years of age. From 1 September 2008 the Children and Young Persons (Sale of Tobacco etc.) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008 became effective, raising the minimum purchase, consumption and possession age to 18 years of age.
Section 3: Prohibition on sale of tobacco, etc. to persons apparently under 18
(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a person who sells to a person under the age of 18 any tobacco or cigarette papers, whether for his own use or not, shall be guilty of an offence.Section 5: Seizure of tobacco, etc. in possession of persons apparently under 18
(2) Any tobacco or cigarette papers seized under paragraph (1) shall be disposed of in such a manner as the Police Authority for Northern Ireland may direct.
(1) A member of the Police Service of Northern Ireland may seize any tobacco or cigarette papers in the possession of any person apparently under the age of 18 whom he finds smoking in any street or public place.
Smoking ban
Smoking in workplaces and enclosed public spaces has been illegal since 26 March 2006 in Scotland, 1 July 2007 in England, 30 April 2007 in Northern Ireland and 2 April 2007 in Wales.
Further restrictions
Starting with retailers larger than 280 square metres in England on 6 April 2012 to smaller shops nationwide on 6 April 2015 the display of tobacco products was banned.
In March 2011, the Coalition Government committed itself to holding a public consultation on the introduction of plain tobacco packaging. Influenced by the introduction of plain packs in Australia, the House of Commons voted 367-113 in March 2015 to pass the Children and Families Act 2014 which would give the government the power to require plain packaging for tobacco products. This came into force on 20 May 2016 but tobacco companies have one year to sell off remaining stock, following this all tobacco products sold in the UK must follow plain packaging laws. Also October 1st 2015 a law was passed which banned smoking in cars with anyone under the age of 18. This was to protect you children from Second hand smoking. But the law doesn't apply to e-cigarettes, if the driver is 17 and on their own or if the car was a convertable with the roof completly down.
Electronic cigarettes
Despite the name, 'e-cigarette,' these devices contain no tobacco and produce no smoke, and therefore any reference to them, should be under e-cigarettes and not smoking. Exceptions to this might be their role as an alternative to smoking, or as devices where it increasingly looks like they are helping young people avoid smoking.
On 2 April 2014 the Welsh Government published a public health white paper in which it proposed a ban on the use of e-cigarettes in public spaces. The Bill was subsequently defeated.
The annual Smokefree GB survey, published in May 2017, concluded that 52% of the 2.9 million British e-cigarette users are now ex-smokers. 26% of respondents thought e-cigarettes were as harmful as real cigarettes. In March 2017, it was reported by The Telegraph UK's e-cigarette boom is on a decline, with the number of people using e-cigarettes in Britain decreasing for the first time since their launch.
References
See also
- Smoking ban in England
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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