The adoption of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill in the United Kingdom confirms its feasibility everywhere else

The United Kingdom has adopted the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, a law drastically reducing smoking, notably prohibiting the sale of cigarettes to people born on or after January 1st.January 2009. Aside from local initiatives, the country is the second in the world, after the Maldives, to take this step. This measure, welcomed by several public health stakeholders, is part of a "tobacco-free generation" objective, in a context where tobacco remains responsible for more than 7 million premature and preventable deaths worldwide. In France, where tobacco was projected to cause 68,000 deaths in 2023 according to Public Health France, the measure was also proposed by a member of parliament, and other countries are committed to this approach.

The French case serves as a reminder that generational bans must be accompanied everywhere by complementary measures.

In France, a cross-party bill aims to establish a similar system, by progressively banning access to tobacco for people born from 1^er January 2014. This measure, supported by the Contre-Feu alliance and its members representing all civil society organizations involved in the fight against smoking, is part of a plan for an effective and progressive ban on the sale of tobacco for all people who have reached the age of majority by 2032. The provision is consistent with the objective set by the public authorities of achieving a tobacco-free generation by 2032, resulting in a prevalence of less than 5% among the generation born in 2014.

Despite recent progress, France remains heavily affected by the problem of smoking. In 2024, among French people aged 18-75, the prevalence of smoking was 25%, and that of daily smoking was 18%.[1]. Furthermore, the social cost of tobacco in terms of health expenditure and productivity losses is estimated at 156 billion euros per year according to the OFDT, illustrating the scale of the associated health and financial challenges.

Public health experts, such as the CNCT, nevertheless point out that no single policy is enough to reduce smoking.[2]. Effectiveness relies on a coherent set of actions, including a strong fiscal policy, which is currently lacking, according to the associations. In the United Kingdom, a pack of cigarettes costs the equivalent of around 20 euros, contributing to a decrease in consumption and initiation.

Added to this is the evolution of consumption habits. The fight against smoking remains a priority given its numerous major consequences, but the rapid increase in the consumption of new nicotine products, particularly vaping products, by young people, now also constitutes a public health problem. In France, the daily prevalence of vaping was 6.1% among 18-75 year olds in 2023 according to the OFDT (French Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction), and 38% of French people aged 16 and over reported having already tried e-cigarettes according to ESPAD 2024. The increase in this consumption necessitates stricter regulation of these products. In this regard, and by way of illustration, the introduction of plain packaging for all tobacco and vaping products has been proposed in the French Parliament via a cross-party initiative, with the provision also planned within the framework of the current tobacco control plan 2023-2027.

Such a ban is also supported elsewhere in the world.

Other public health organizations around the world have said they were inspired by the vote on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, although the law has not yet been advanced or even proposed at the parliamentary level.

Thus, in Belgium, the Cancer Foundation is advocating for a similar generational sales ban, noting that four out of five adults who smoke started before the age of 25, and wants to extend the measure to vaping products.[3].

In Canada, where a tobacco-free generation is the goal by 2035, such a measure has been called for for several years, and the Heart and Stroke Foundation hopes that recent events in the UK will encourage public authorities to act.[4]. The 2024 Canadian Community Health Survey estimates that 11% of Canadians aged 18 and over reported smoking, and Health Canada data indicates that one in ten Canadians aged 20-24 vapes daily. A study published on the Government of Canada website, which aimed to assess the potential impacts of a generational ban on the sale of cigarettes to anyone born from 2009 onward, found that after 50 years, this policy would save $2.3 billion annually in healthcare costs.

In Taiwan, where many ambitious anti-smoking measures have been implemented in the past, the government stated that a generational sales ban would be studied in more detail by the Health Promotion Administration, but that it required prior public debate and consensus.[5]. The success of such a measure is directly linked to the fact that smoking prevalence has fallen sufficiently to achieve a near-consensus, as is the case in the United Kingdom.

The stakes are high for the tobacco industry, which is fiercely opposed to this measure. The first country to adopt the measure, New Zealand, finally abolished its legislation following a change of government where the interests of the industry were taken into account. Other countries like Malaysia They had considered a ban similar to the one passed in the United Kingdom, but also backed down under pressure from tobacco industry lobbying. This measure illustrates the importance of implementing a key provision of the WHO treaty, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control: the protection of public policies from interference by this industry.

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[1]Sharp decline in smoking in France: in 10 years, 4 million fewer daily smokers, Public Health France, published on October 15, 2025, accessed on April 23, 2026

[2]Maxime Glorieux, ""The British are leading the way!" French associations are hoping for a surge in action after the adoption of a "tobacco-free generation" law in the United Kingdom., France Info, published April 22, 2026, accessed April 23, 2026

[3]Cancer Foundation: A tobacco-free generation can also exist in Belgium, RTBF, published on April 22, 2026, accessed on April 23, 2026

[4]Annie Bergeron-Oliver, ‘'Step in the right direction': Health experts hope UK smoking ban pushes Canada to do the same, CTV News, published April 22, 2026, accessed April 23, 2026

[5]Keoni Everington, Taiwan eyes smoking ban for people born after 2009, Taiwan News, published April 23, 2026, accessed the same day

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