British health officials are calling for measures to ban smoking and vaping among younger generations.

More than 1,200 British healthcare professionals – doctors, midwives, public health directors, smoking cessation counselors, academics, clinicians, nurses, trade standards officers, environmental health professionals, and advisors – have called on political parties in a letter to adopt the Tobacco and Vapes Bill without delay[1]The bill, tabled on November 5, 2024, and whose examination resumed in the House of Lords on October 27, 2025, is highlighted in the letter. It points out that six months elapsed between the second reading of the bill and Monday's debate, and that, according to their estimates, approximately 124,600 young people aged 18 to 25 have started smoking since the bill was introduced in November 2024.[2].

What the Tobacco and Vapes Bill contains

The bill, considered one of the most ambitious public health measures in recent decades, aims to ban the sale of tobacco to anyone born after January 1st.^er January 2009, in order to create a tobacco-free generation. This is complemented by a component designed to strictly regulate the marketing of vaping products from a prevention perspective, targeting young people.

Regarding the age-based ban on tobacco, the legislation provides for a gradual increase in the customer age at which a retailer is legally allowed to sell tobacco. This increase will be one year each year starting in 2027. Currently, the legal age to purchase tobacco products is 18.

Regarding vaping products, restrictions are planned on sales, promotion, packaging, and flavorings, particularly those targeting minors, such as colorful packaging and sweet flavors. Restrictions on nicotine content are also being considered.

In addition, penalties are strengthened against retailers who break the law, with local authorities given increased powers to enforce them and government agencies given new powers to seize illegal tobacco and e-cigarettes.

This is all part of a government strategy to create a smoke-free country, as smoking is responsible for more than 70,000 preventable deaths annually in the UK and costs the health system billions of pounds.

Mobilization of the health sector and support from public opinion

Public health organizations are highlighting the political delay in adopting the text, which they describe as " a historic opportunity to protect future generations ".

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) points out that 350 young people start smoking every day in the UK.

Cancer Research UK, Asthma + Lung UK, and the British Heart Foundation emphasize the major health impact of tobacco, a leading cause of cancer and respiratory diseases. According to Dr. Charmaine Griffiths, Chief Executive of the British Heart Foundation, nearly 18,000 deaths annually from cardiovascular disease are attributable to smoking.

Several associations are advocating for increased funding for smoking cessation services, particularly through a tax on the tobacco industry.

Furthermore, according to a survey published in April 2025, The majority of the British population supports ambitious policies to improve healthAmong the respondents, 73% support a ban on smoking in areas such as playgrounds, in front of schools, and around hospitals. Furthermore, 61% support reducing the number of retailers authorized to sell tobacco in order to limit its availability, and 49% would support a ban on smoking in outdoor public spaces (terraces of pubs, restaurants, bars, clubs, cafes, etc.).

Call for swift action in the face of pronounced industry interference

The signatories of the letter addressed to health spokespeople believe that a further delay would constitute a national failure in a country where 11.9% of adults smoke, the equivalent of approximately 6 million people.[3].

They are calling for the bill to be passed swiftly, believing it represents a historic step towards a tobacco-free United Kingdom. They argue it is a crucial step in reducing health inequalities, premature deaths, and the economic cost of smoking to the health and social care system.

Peter Roderick, spokesperson for the Association of Public Health Directors for Drug Addiction, believes that It is therefore vitally important that this bill, which is an opportunity to save even more lives, to protect future generations from addiction to this deadly product and to give the freedom to live healthier lives to the 88,130 people – including thousands of medically vulnerable people – who do not smoke, be passed without further delay. ".

Conversely, tobacco producer groups have threatened the government with legal action over the proposed generational ban and have tried to rally support among Conservative MPs to water down the proposals.

The Guardian and Examination, a non-profit media outlet that investigates global health threats, reported in June 2025 on links between British parliamentarians and industry lobbyists. For example, Conservative peer Ed Vaizey proposed postponing another key provision of the bill concerning the ban on heated tobacco products, just weeks after Philip Morris International (PMI) funded his visit to its research center in Switzerland. In October 2025, the same investigators revealed that Lord Strathcarron had proposed an amendment aimed at narrowing the scope of the future ban on generational tobacco sales. this parliamentarian has links with a senior official at British American Tobacco (BAT).

These attempts by the tobacco lobby to interfere in legislation that enjoys widespread public and public health support underscore the importance of protecting public policies from this direct and indirect tobacco industry lobby. Health professionals remind us that this is one of the obligations the United Kingdom undertook when it ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) on December 16, 2004.

©Generation Without Tobacco

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[1]Smokefree Action, Saving lives and protecting the NHSPublished on October 27, 2025, accessed on October 29, 2025

[2]ASH, Health Leaders Demand Action on Generational Smoking BanPublished on October 27, 2025, accessed on October 29, 2025

[3]Morgan Ofori, Over 1,200 health leaders call for swift passage of UK tobacco and vapes billThe Guardian, published on October 27, 2025, accessed on October 29, 2025

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