Minimum legal age to purchase tobacco to rise from 16 to 18.

(From Government News Network (Was Hermes-Government Press Releases))

] DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 2006/0396 29 December 2006 Minimum legal age to purchase tobacco to rise from 16 to 18

Law effective from October 1 2007

The government is to raise the legal minimum age to purchase tobacco from 16 to 18 years old, Public Health Minister Caroline Flint announced today.

Raising the age of buying tobacco which will come into effect from 1 October 2007, will follow closely on the heels of the introduction of smokefree public places and workplaces on 1 July 2007. A campaign to raise awareness of the imminent change in age will be launched in the New Year.

About nine per cent of young people aged between 11 and 15 smoke, and government is determined to reduce this figure further. Raising the legal age to 18 will make it easier for retailers to spot under-age smokers and lead to a fall in the number of teenagers who get addicted to nicotine and continue to smoke into adulthood.

Bringing the legal age for the purchase of tobacco into line with that of alcohol will reinforce the dangers of smoking to young people, as well as helping retailers comply with the law. It would also bring England and Wales into line with Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the US.