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Rishi Sunak failed to turn up to vote for a ban on young people ever being able to buy cigarettes, despite the former prime minister having introduced the idea in the first place.
MPs passed the Tobacco and Vapes Bill at its second reading by 415 votes to 47, legislation which will make it illegal for anyone born after 2009 to buy tobacco at any point in their lives.
The plan was first announced by Mr Sunak at last year’s Tory conference in Manchester, where he promised to “ensure that future generations are smoke-free.”
But on Tuesday, Mr Sunak failed to turn up to show his support for the law. Meanwhile, his successor, Kemi Badenoch, voted against the ban.
Unveiling the proposal in 2023, Mr Sunak said: “No parent ever wants their child to start smoking. It is a deadly habit – killing tens of thousands of people and costing our NHS billions each year, while also being hugely detrimental to our productivity as a country.
“I want to build a better and brighter future for our children, so that’s why I want to stamp out smoking for good.
“These changes will mean our kids will never be able to buy a cigarette, preventing them getting hooked and protecting their health both now and in the future.”
The legislation, which was dropped by the previous Tory government when an election was called last summer, was revived by Labour after the party won a landslide victory.
At the time the proposal was dropped, Mr Sunak said he was disappointed it wouldn’t become law.
Urging MPs to back the ban in the Commons on Tuesday, health secretary Wes Streeting said there is “no freedom in addiction”.
He defended the government’s plans to create a “smoke-free generation” by gradually raising the age at which tobacco can be bought.
Conservative MP Bob Blackman called for the legislation to go further to include a levy on tobacco companies’ profits to hold them responsible “for the blight on our population’s health”.
“Both of my parents died from smoking-related cancer. My late mother was only 47, and she was a very heavy smoker all her life. I was then left as a 23-year-old with three younger sisters to bring up as a family,” he said.
“I don’t want any families in this country to have to go through what our family went through then. So this for me is personal, as well as political.”
However, critics of the legislation have expressed concerns over civil liberties and state overreach.
Conservative MP Andrew Rosindell said “banning things very rarely works”, adding: “Surely we should be promoting the concept of freedom with responsibility and allowing people to make choices about their own lives?”
Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats’ health spokeswoman Helen Morgan said: “The introduction of a phased smoking ban is problematic and not because Liberal Democrats want to see people smoke themselves into an early grave – far from it – but because it raises issues of practicality and raises issues of civil liberties.”
The legislation includes a total ban on vape advertising and sponsorship, including displays seen by children and young people such as on buses, in cinemas and in shop windows, bringing them in line with tobacco restrictions.
Mr Streeting said the Bill will “come down on the vaping industry like a ton of bricks to prevent a new generation of children and young people from getting hooked on nicotine.”
