Ireland: Towards a ban on the sale of tobacco to under-21s?

In Ireland, a bill proposing to raise the legal age to buy tobacco products to 21 is expected to be submitted to the government in the coming weeks. This proposal, which has been pushed for at least two years by the current Minister of State for Public Health, could be adopted quickly. For its part, the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland has welcomed this initiative aimed at protecting young people from smoking.

As reported by the Irish Examiner, Stephen Donnelly, Ireland's Minister for Health, announced in April that he intends to seek government approval to ban the sale of tobacco products to anyone under the age of 21. This is part of the country's goal of achieving a tobacco-free generation by 2025.[1].

A decrease of 12% in smoking prevalence expected

The bill is based on an initiative by Colm Burke, before he was appointed Minister of State for Public Health. Two years earlier, Burke, then Fine Gael's Health Spokesman, had published a report proposing that the government raise the legal age from 18 to 21. The report drew in particular on the experience of the United States, where raising the legal age to 21 had reduced smoking prevalence by 20% among young people under 25 in 2016. According to the Minister of State, implementing such a ban in Ireland would result in a reduction of 12% in smoking prevalence. Colm Burke had also expressed the hope that Ireland would once again commit to proactive policies to combat smoking.

The high human, health and financial impact of smoking in Ireland

As Colm Burke points out, tobacco consumption is responsible for 4,500 premature deaths per year in Ireland. With a national prevalence of 18%, smoking is also the cause of a large number of chronic and disabling diseases, including 13% of all cancers in the country. The impact of smoking on health is coupled with a significant pressure on the hospital system and public finances. Indeed, the Minister of State responsible for public health points out that tobacco accounts for 5% of hospital admissions and 8% of all hospital days, with an estimated cost of €172 million to public hospitals. On the occasion of this proposal, Colm Burke declared that he would do "everything in [his] power […] to help reduce the prevalence of smoking and make the country a smoke-free society".

Strong social inequalities in health

Although smoking prevalence has fallen by five percentage points since 2015, smoking in Ireland remains a major social marker. According to Colm Burke’s 2022 report, smoking is almost three times higher among the lowest socio-economic groups (31%) than among the highest income groups (11%). While between 2015 and 2021, tobacco consumption fell sharply among the highest income groups (16%), smoking prevalence increased by 2% among the lowest income groups. This translates into significant health inequality, with life expectancy gaps of four to five years across social groups.

©Tobacco Free Generation

FT

[1] Irish Examiner, Cabinet to discuss raising age for buying cigarettes and tobacco to 21, 04/30/2024, (accessed the same day)