British lawmakers back plans to ban smoking | DW News

Smoking has long been taken for granted, even in Britain. But the party of cigar lover Winston Churchill wants to abolish smoking. The government in London wants to better protect society and is now taking a far-reaching step. It wants to prohibit future generations from legally purchasing tobacco products.
On Tuesday evening, the House of Commons voted 383 to 67 in favor of a bill to do just that. However, the government of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak faced considerable opposition from within his own party. However, it received support from the opposition.
Chapters
00:00 Chris Whitty, UK Chief Medical Officer
00:25 British lawmakers back plans to ban smoking
01:21 Charlotte Chelsom-Pill, DW Correspondent
#smokingban #tobaccoproducts #rishisunak
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[@stealthbum34]

Yeah because banning substances and making them illegal has always worked so well 😅

[@simonthekindcutthroat6324]

Yeah lets ask the Americans about prohibition lmao.

[@livewiya]

Perhaps it hasn't always worked well, but it also hasn't always worked out terribly. An example: One of the biggest myths is that American prohibition was a complete disaster; however, the data shows significant decreases to liver cirrhosis deaths, dramatic decreases in number of patients in the alcohol wards, decreased public drunkenness arrests. By some estimates, domestic violence complaints fell by half! The claim that it single-handedly gave birth to American organized crime is beyond exaggeration - data around crime and prohibition is mixed, but might lean towards an overall decrease. Now, clumsy policy can have bad consequences: About 15 years ago, there was international coordination to control supply chains of Safrole, and other precursors to MDMA. Chemists came up with other drugs, that had similar effects but did not depend on these precursors - drug deaths increased, attributed to these new substitutes. Society still suffers the consequences, and it is unclear how much it decreased consumption of drugs in this class.

[@lucidity7079]

Far better than the alternative. I suppose you're suggesting we'd live in a better world is you could buy heroin at your local pharmacy? The s**t people post these days...

[@stealthbum34]

@@livewiya seems to have worked as well as the ‘war on drugs’ or ‘war on terror’ to me.

[@militant_pacifist]

Ban all tobacco advertisement, enforce bland packaging, ban flavored vapes and single use vapes. In exchange allow tobacco home growing and keep tobacco legal. We've seen in excruciating detail that banning substances only funds criminal gangs.

[@dlkdyscot]

The British govt largest tax collectors and drug dealers going. Look at your history and the fund of this empire , the money b that built the country. They even went to war over opium.

[@fna7196]

Didn't work in NZ. Next govt canned it.

[@ethimself5064]

These do gooder types are so short on facts they should really get an education on health issues that have been hidden fairly good.

[@fna7196]

@@ethimself5064 in the end govt want taxes. Remove tobacco and its a huge hit to bottom line. It's all a farce

[@FredHousehold]

Never a good idea 💡 to ban something other countries can sale ! People will smoke aboard + be like usa banned on alcohol 🍸 .

[@lostonearth7856]

It'll probably take longer due to Labour not really being Pro-Lung Cancer sticks

[@lucidity7079]

Never underestimate the power of big money lobbies.

[@Reek151]

Churchill would be so disappointed with everything in the uk to be fair.

[@Memovox]

Churchill would appreciate me using dinghy's to ferry tobacco into the UK.

[@Hackney_Boy-DoesntReadReplies]

He was an opportunist from a very wealthy family that didn't believe the poor should vote.

[@theskyehiker]

Both my parents smoked. I started smoking at age 14. I quit at age 28. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. It’s been 43 years now. I must say, it was cost and social pressure that pushed me into quitting.

[@labourlawact7826]

Just think of all the money you saved in that 43 years😊

[@serebii666]

@@labourlawact7826 dude... He quit at 28, so only 15 years.

[@labourlawact7826]

@@serebii666 He says it's been 43 years now... So, I take it he means 43 years now since he quitted. And he's 71. Please enlighten us skyhiker

[@serebii666]

@@labourlawact7826 oops 😅😅

[@labourlawact7826]

@serebii666 Whatever 😁 I've quit and restarted about 500 times, and if I had all the money I wasted on it now, I could probably retire. I started at 14, and I'm now 60. I now only smoke a few ciggies a month. Only when driving my car does the cravings hit me, then I buy a couple loose Peter Stuyvesant at the cafe🤭🙄

[@MackeyDeeez]

1:17 Drinking is bad. We're better off without it. I say it's time to do something like, I dunno, prohibit the sale of it. That will work well!

[@michah7214]

How do you believe in the government banning things like parents?? That's not government's role

[@tristanridley1601]

Alcohol is an intoxicant, causes enjoyable effects, and may not even be harmful in low intensities. Tobacco is JUST harmful and addictive.

[@michah7214]

@@tristanridley1601 it causes no mental impairment. It's an adult's CHOICE. It's not for the government to decide

[@kynanverwimp847]

​@@tristanridley1601alcohol is harmful on any level ...

[@verzeda]

​@@tristanridley1601you can say that about any drug, make em all legal then

[@Xamufam]

He should look at refined sugar and seed oil

[@michah7214]

See that's the slippery slope of a nanny state

[@esteemedyams]

Definitely. And they should make sure that you're required to exercise every day. And that you get enough sunlight and fresh air. And maybe have you spend less time online, that's unhealthy too. And it would be best if you only had sex to procreate, it's safer that way.

[@MachFiveFalcon]

New Zealand was about to do this, but they later abandoned it. Outright prohibition often backfires. Excise taxes to discourage smoking and raise tax money to pay for smoking-related medical care makes the most sense to me.

[@warbler1984]

The only reason they backtracked is because the left wing party was voted out and a coalition of 3 right wing parties took over its not like the government suddenly realised it was a bad idea they just changed the government

[@CorePathway]

Yup. Never works. Just makes criminals rich and normal people into criminals

[@DemPilafian]

As a blanket statement that is false. It all depends on what is being prohibited. There is a massive difference between prohibiting chewing gum verses prohibiting heroin.

[@theskyehiker]

That seems to be the most effective path.

[@Omega0850]

Taxing it would be my first approach too. But i know several smokers who run out of money before the end of the month, but seem unable to even think of the solution of smoking less.

[@crubie3]

My grandma died at 99 due to smoking 😅😅

[@wackychicken]

Are you stupidly implying that smoking is safe?

[@spardakuz]

@@wackychickennah, he’s stupidly implying that during grandma’s time she was free to choose by herself to smoke or not

[@tomnicholson2115]

​@@wackychicken Are you saying freedom of choice is bad? Perhaps we should ban alcohol, mountain climbing and swimming as these choices can also result in medical expenses.

[@Memovox]

@@wackychicken You best stay inside for the rest of the year. We wouldn't want something bad happening to you.

[@simonthekindcutthroat6324]

@@Memovox Bad news, indoor air quality is so bad due to textiles shedding microplastic fibers that its actually also bad for your health to stay inside. Maybe cease existing?

[@willrsan]

In South Africa during the pandemic all tobacco products were banned from sale. All that happened is drug gangs moved in to fill the void selling illegal cigarettes and vapes from China and Zimbabwe. This persisted after the ban was lifted as illegal cigarettes are sold without the taxes that apply to legal cigarettes and are much cheaper than the legal options.

[@Masterrunescapeer]

Studies showed that ~10% of smokers stopped after the ban, though 70% of those relapsed. It's also a bit different, since it was illegal to sell, not illegal to smoke, and wasn't close to enough time to allow it to cease. Bans would mean you wouldn't be able to go to work and go out for a smoke, since then can do stuff like make company liable, etc., and the British system over time will move to that, just will take a decade or two, and if it's no longer accepted by society, smoking will drop. Most get into smoking due to peer pressure.

[@_google_user_]

Next McDonalds.

[@selwynrenard]

How about alcohol?

[@tomnicholson2115]

​@@selwynrenard That would never happen, no government will ban something they enjoy!

[@ethimself5064]

@@tomnicholson2115 🤣🤣🤣

[@jeffblahblah5226]

Should be

[@ethimself5064]

I have been studying carious aspects of medicine since 1981 and my comment got deleted. 🤣 So much for reality

[@NannaCarlstedt2]

How about addressing the tobacco industry behind all this?

[@Hackney_Boy-DoesntReadReplies]

Donors to the Conservative party.

[@andrewcollier3495]

Great idea, as an ex smoker it took me 20 years to give up (best decision I ever made). Costs loads of money, terrible for health and stinks. It costs the UK billions in related health care cost per years.

[@billder2655]

they also raise 10 billion from the tax of smoking products, more than the US does (which has 5x the population, and 4.5x the smoking population) - as someone who is actively quitting smoking, the potential vape flavour ban for traditional vapes worries me most (i can stomach the disposable ban, they’re overpriced, low quality and easy for children to get their hands on). traditional vape systems are the most effective pathway for quitting smoking and yet the government wants to increase the tax on vape products and ban flavours on all systems, despite the fact that 69% of vapers aged 11-17 used disposable vapes.

[@GansGreuts]

So because you lack self-restraint, others should have their rights taken away? Nanny state behaviour.

[@blackcountryme]

There's a beer in the UK called "Nanny State" At 5% alcohol, cos there was a rumour to ban higher strength beer.

[@militant_pacifist]

Funnily enough smokers dying early saves even more in pensions/retirement than it costs in healthcare spending. Only when you incorporate an inherent monetary value to a life is smoking an actual monetary loss to the state.

[@quitefranklyjosh]

I smoked on and off for years while I was in the Army. Never felt like I was addicted…. At most I averaged a pack or pack and a half a week. I still smoke on occasion but rarely more than maybe 5 cigarettes or cigars a year. Addiction isn’t a given, it depends on the person.

[@jimzenglish1]

So ban alcohol aswell. Its causes a multitude of health issues and far more social issues.

[@blackcountryme]

yep, when I smoked, I smoked 10 cigarettes and had a bit of a sore throat, 10 pints and someone gets killed in a fight...

[@jaysonp9426]

You like cartels and crime then?

[@villandoom]

Do you know how Prohibition went? We already tried that

[@Surfer8652]

Bravo, I'd like to see them ban alcohol and sugary foods as well. It's convenient to want to ban someone else's vices, but what about your own?

[@cocolasticot9027]

Not nearly as addictive as tobacco. People don't actually want to smoke, or at least not for long, that's the problem. Alcohol is recreational, and we actually need sugar in one form or another. But regulating ultra-processed food is already discussed everywhere, for good reason.

[@rowanlocke8105]

I love this episode of Yes Prime Minister

[@GansGreuts]

Quintessential nanny state.

[@Kimjongilmao]

What is with the audio quality?! Not impressed lol

[@olajideparis]

Yeah, I don’t understand how anybody would be against this. This is good for everybody.

[@MackeyDeeez]

I'm glad the UK has gotten all their problems under control! Clearly if they're working on this, there's no other important, pressing issues at hand.

[@lucidity7079]

The irony is, your 'opinion' could just as easily be dropped regardless of the issue they're tackling. As they saying goes: one man with an idea is more useful than a thousand with mere opinions. How can anyone with an entry-level IQ, see them doing something - taking aim, at a problem that's quite literally - killing millions around the world every year, as worthy of criticism?

[@MackeyDeeez]

@@lucidity7079 do you think they should ban soda? There's literally no upside to it at all, and heart disease and diabetes are the biggest killers out there. I'm just curious

[@lucidity7079]

@@MackeyDeeez You consuming soda won't kill the person next to you - but smoking (second hand smoke) eventually will. Any more questions?

[@MackeyDeeez]

@@lucidity7079 then ban it in public

[@JustB3NJI]

Churchill will be fine because I'll bet you London to a brick an exception will be made for Cigars...Exceptions are already made for them, they are taxed far less than ciggies and they don't have to be in plain packaging.

[@satishgupta2658]

Chris whitt and Winston Churchill same 😂😂

[@Kroogles]

The state should have no say in what we do with our own bodies.

[@kmkvladne]

what about heroine?

[@warbler1984]

Except when you put something with 342 carcinogens into your body you make health insurance and state expenditure on health to skyrocket...

[@InFamou5Killer]

does the state pay for your health care?

[@MackeyDeeez]

@@kmkvladne What about it?

[@krzysztofkoniec9548]

State pay my insurance? People pay insurance not state

[@robertchmielecki2580]

Addiction of people in the comments making them make excuses in 3..2...1...

[@australiagreg3179]

Australia is already doing all this. It also increases the price of cigs every 3 months. Presently a pack of 20 is over $34. Oz has the highest taxed tobaco in the world.

[@eddenoy321]

The high taxes on cigs are good for the non smokers.

[@Hackney_Boy-DoesntReadReplies]

That's around £17.50, a pack of 20 in the UK costs the same for a decent brand, rolling baccy is £23 for 50g.

[@rumls4drinkin]

Raising the minimum age over time is probably good, as a smoker. Raising prices just means I won't buy food and an outright ban would be....difficult. the mental hospitals would be overflowing day one.

[@elementary101Music]

Is drinking coming next

[@Hackney_Boy-DoesntReadReplies]

Donors to the Conservative party.

[@michaelb5740]

The woman’s audio is so bad

[@eddenoy321]

it is

[@williamlai29]

We should smoke weed instead of cigar after the ban.

[@Wizreader2828]

New Zealand has repealed this law. Anything learnt from that?

[@xelakram]

Don't you think that Chris Whitty looks a picture of health as a non-smoker? And he's only 57!

[@robertszekely4378]

Did Charlotte Chelsom-Pill record that with a backing up camera? Terrible audio

[@filippo8189]

Makes no sense. Just raise taxes on tobacco products and make it prohibitively expensive to smoke. That will work even better than a ban and will stave off any legal challenges citing personal freedom.

[@desinihilist5916]

The most important job for a government is to make its people believe they are free.

[@vxyz5219]

While I'm all for phasing out tobacco, this approach seems clumsy.

[@Funkyourdauter]

As the great American General McAuliffe once said "Nuts!"

[@b33thr33kay]

I can't hear what she's saying.... Can you at least not add a second clip playing in the background?

[@getcake8680]

me thinking this is a great idea while smoking a joint.

[@ems4884]

This seems like a touch of overkill

[@nofacee94]

there's no such thing as free will, punishment is immoral

[@michaelsweeney4547]

Can't understand her.

[@blackcountryme]

So who is going to tell a man in the future aged 40 and a man aged 41 who can and cant buy cigarettes?

[@Masterrunescapeer]

You'll just both be checked for ID, and assuming Britain will do the same as Europe's Id system, so will probably just be forced to use an electronic id to make the purchase seamless.

[@MrsKastell]

Chris Whitt looks like Winston Churchill 😂😂😂

[@xelakram]

He may look like him, but I feel quite sure that Winston Churchill wouldn't be able to tolerate him.

[@pixie_sparkle74]

Banning it is not going to help . This kind of thing always backfires.

[@lucidity7079]

If you say so. By the way - punctuation 'always' follows sentences. Time to give your laptop back to your older brother. This is a conversation for adults.

[@pixie_sparkle74]

@lucidity7079 By the way, stop being a 🧌... Also, America is a prime example of what happens when you try to ban things ....

[@gearoftones8585]

Banning smoking will really put the death nail into any hope of legalising weed here. At a time when the rest of the world is wakening to the fact that weed is a far less harmful drug than alcohol, here we are just banning something else. We are so far behind the rest of the world now. What a laughing stock.

[@christopherx7428]

This did not work in NZ in spite of it generally being a good idea: If you never start smoking, you are better off so prohibiting sales to people born after a certain date seems to make sense. However, there must be alternatives for people addicted to nicotine. How do you handle immigrants or long term visitors that smoke? It could work in Sweden, which today is nearly a smoking free country thanks to the wide availability of "snus", tobacco pouches you put under your lip.

[@bruceh9780]

What a fun way of identifying who is taking money from tobacco companies.

[@dallesamllhals9161]

Define smoke? Edit: SMOG

[@busysaru888]

Nicotine should not be added to tobacco products. It should be banned from public areas.

[@JackZeroZ]

That's not going to be the biggest thing to make him turn beyond the grave.

[@jandlouhy6914]

They have to reduce export - import imballance somehow .

[@uzul42]

I never smoked in my life and I'm against a ban. The health risks and the unavoidable detriments to ones health of smoking are well known and public by now. I'm all for information campaigns and warnings on the product but a ban would only criminalize it and drive it underground like with other drugs. Also if you ban smoking you should also ban alcohol and various other things that can also be detrimental to your health like certain sports and activities. Let adults determine their own lives - risks and all.

[@andrewmaston1099]

Absolutely, other countries are looking towards legalising drugs and focusing on social health, whilst the UK is living in the 1920s planning on rolling out a prohibition, good old tories.

[@Masterrunescapeer]

Smoking harms those around you as well, don't really have a choice if have to walk past them to get somewhere. Alcohol doesn't harm in small quantities and won't harm those around (unless behavior becomes an issue or etc., which is already illegal, e.g. DUI).

[@LowTempDabr]

Im literally smoking a cigarette while watching this 😊

[@marco_0599]

Smoking killed my father when I was 22, I have never smoked but I don't agree with an outright ban. What would be more fair on everyone including taxpayers, is that smokers waive their rights to free NHS care for smoking related diseases and pay for care themselves.

[@michaelre7556]

You may think that you want a healthcare system that discriminates based on behavior, but I assure you that you do not want that.

[@militant_pacifist]

How about people that consume alcohol? Individuals that are overweight? Child birth is also preventable and has massive health risks. How about people participating in extreme sports? How about people participating in contact sports? All of these are preventable, all of these incur massive costs to the healthcare system. I'm being facetious with sports and birth, but the rest still incur massive costs, with obesity related heart conditions being the most likely culprit to kill someone over time. Should only sporty non-alcohol consuming vegetarians have their heart treatments paid? That would be the logical conclusion, and it would be incredibly unfair to those unfun vegetarians to have to pay for my carnivore, sedentary drinker healthcare costs. You sure you want that?

[@Masterrunescapeer]

Should still be covered, get the money to fund it from an extra tax on tobacco (and other sin taxes). Reason smoking should be banned is because of second hand smoke, it's harming those around you as well, while alcohol usually only directly harms the drinker (not saying it doesn't cause bad actions, but in terms of having a single glass of wine generally won't harm the person sitting next to you).

[@lhommeaudacieux]

I find the idea of banning something for one person and not for another solely based on age (as opposed to maturity which is commonly associated with 18s of age) extremely discriminatory and dangerous. They are creating a two class society where one part of the population arbitrarily gets more rights than the other. How any democratic parliament could pass this in this form I beyond me and I say that as a life long non smoker and supporter of a general ban on smoking. Basic equality before the law just died in the UK.

[@jedi10101]

agree, smoking should be banned. land, water, & other resources used for tobacco should be used for producing food instead of poison.

[@tristanridley1601]

So, apparently I need to move to Britain. Living in Toronto (Canada) with a tobacco allergy means missing out on most public outdoor activities.

[@adios2011]

I kind of like the idea 😬

[@Escape_The_Mundane]

Imagine they did this in Canada or Australia. Smoking is very bad. I knew old man who smoke, it rotted away their teeth, and gave them small cell lung cancer. I am from America.

[@kmay4963]

Think im gonna start making my moonshine. Next batch of dippy politicians gonna make me rich.

[@martinsmith3354]

Where are they going to get all that tax money they will no longer be collecting?

[@lolipopcrash]

Does it include marihuana?

[@esteemedyams]

That never was legal to begin with

[@Memovox]

Big Pharma has banned the herb. -It's bad for business.

[@Ambient_Scenes]

Because banning a drug that people consume has worked so well every time in the past... nanny state.

[@thecanticleofcrom4787]

Starting a gofundme to get Charlotte a new microphone.

[@jieli3313]

China's overcapacity is mainly reflected in the number of houses! Although the Chinese government has repeatedly denied overcapacity! But as long as we investigate the facts, the Chinese government will be unable to deny it!

[@eduzz4655]

Under no circumstances would it be legal nor democratic to have, one day, a 30-years-old British citizen or a UK resident able to buy a product and at the very same time a 29-years-old citizen unable legally to buy tobacco. It's an absolute madness!

[@jimsquire-chestnuts8381]

“Keep smoking legal. We have an aging population and we can’t afford all the pensions. Smoking limits the number of pensioners we have to sustain.” - libertarians aren’t saying their true reasoning.

[@MaLcH10R]

libertarians actually believe in freedom, not just using governments to "Get our way"

[@serebii666]

That is actually the pitch Phillips Morris made to the Czech Government in 2000. They claimed that Czechia saves $1,227 on health care, pensions and housing every time a smoker dies. Obviously they had to issue an apology afterwards, especially, since the study was ripped apart when a new study (A. D. Little, 2001) found that smoking actually cost the state budget 15,647 million CZK ($403 million) per year.

[@spicyroads]

If we all wore helmets 24/7 we’d have fewer head injuries. This would save lives and health care costs

[@Reggaebeatman]

Overlord Barons ...ban, ban, ban, Ban. Politicians need to distract u from core issues. Ban!!!everything including your freedom of speech because it maybe hate.

[@Hackney_Boy-DoesntReadReplies]

The only free speech being banned in the UK is people speaking out against oil companies and their trained politicians.

[@militant_pacifist]

Legalize recreational cocaine. But unironically

[@raclark2730]

Bootleggers will make a killing.

[@jungle1smass1ve]

You can say that banning something is not going to prevent from doing it, of course. Someone who stopped buying cigarettes 8 years ago, I can only say it works to an extent. It will definitely stop some people from smoking, because if it is inconvenient to buy it, I just won't. Those who will want to smoke, will always find a way. Just cancel free healthcare for those who are harming themselves and let them do whatever they want to their bodies. It's impossible to take care of all of the humanity, some people just seek their ways to death.

[@militant_pacifist]

And those that find a way will fund criminal groups specialized on import export business. Make stuff illegal and I can guarantee organized crime will start making bank with it. "Just cancel free healthcare for those who are harming themselves and let them do whatever they want to their bodies" Such as child birth? Has massively negative consequences on the body, with a huge risk of complications and it can easily be prevented. Or people playing sports? People that work in physical labor? How about people consuming alcohol? Individuals that eat unhealthy? Obese people? Where is the cut off for preventable self harm to still get healthcare?

[@DemPilafian]

*_"Banning something has never been a solution to anything."_* Ok, let's remove the bans on littering, racial discrimination, stealing, honor killings, domestic violence, jihad, and DWI/DUI. Keep in mind that the U.K. has universal healthcare.

[@CustomComputing]

Europe loves their smoking, it is a thing Canada has essentially “banned”/make impossible to sustain as a habit through financial destruction has allowed for a smoke free generation I think this is a good move

[@Balmorax]

Let's just all be robots and god forbid we enjoy something in this life.

[@elis6299]

Seems slightly naive; people will get their fix, one way or another. It's better to systematically reduce it over time by limiting production, imports, raising taxes, and providing more education about the consequences. This approach seems more likely to succeed than banning it overnight. I still think a stronger global stigma around this type of self-harm is necessary to make any real changes. People will be less willing to accept prohibition laws when they are constantly exposed to digital information about places without the same restrictions.

[@itmakesyouthink]

Because such a great tax revenue.

[@bullpup1337]

so…. people should have the choice to make wrong decisions? I guess this only applies to cigarettes and not other drugs? Logical consistency nowhere to be found

[@michah7214]

Are they REALLY going to put people in jail for buying cigarettes? Or even selling it?? Seriously??

[@tristanridley1601]

Just a fine and inconvenience will eventually get rid of it.

[@michah7214]

@@tristanridley1601 I wish that was true for actual illicit drugs.

[@jimvonkropsberg399]

Ban smoking please!

[@dlkdyscot]

As a smoker if they ban it I want ban on alcohol too. Fair is fair. And i also want a ban on the countless cars and buses trudging by my house putting diesel and petrol fumes into my lungs.

[@militant_pacifist]

Ban all tobacco advertisement. Enforce bland packaging. Ban flavored vapes and single use vapes. But banning tobacco in general will backfire and only fund criminal gangs. The other fun bit is that smokers die disproportionately earlier, meaning they'll be less of a drain on the pension system. If you add it all up smoking actually saves money for the state going by pure numbers.

[@geeksworkshop]

And they called Great Britain a nanny state. Meanwhile in Germany....

[@militant_pacifist]

@@user-zm6qj9cz7b Not entirely. It's a two pronged approach, the first one was the legalization of possession, home growing and cannabis social clubs, while the second prong will come later with the full commercialization and shops. Sure hope that second prong won't be blocked by the conservative opposition somehow.

[@militant_pacifist]

@@user-zm6qj9cz7b What do you mean by political scheme? Did the current ruling government think about the political consequences and feasibility of this decision? Absolutely Is everyone happy with the current state of things? Absolutely not. Is it a massive improvement over the previous situation for cannabis consumers? YES.

[@ottz2506]

nah can’t support this. This is a freedom issue. The people who support this likely eat fast food a lot, drink sometimes to an excess and consume all other sorts of unhealthy things and would certainly object to those being banned. Smoking being banned in certain areas and preventing kids from buying and using them is fine but an outright ban? Nah. Education is much better than bans.

[@TheMrNoobChannel]

isn't too late for aprils fools ?!

[@MilesBellas]

Legalise pot instead.

[@doreilly7689]

It's just gonna cost more and you're gonna lose out on the tax making criminals benefit instead of the government (nhs you're trying to save) ... i can't properly describe how idiotic this is. Ever heard of a "speakeasy"? UK is gonna have breatheasy's

[@_general_error]

Yes! I am a life-time smoker/vaper... I want Nicotine and analogs banned, so I can finally stop forever!

[@adamcolclasure4892]

More like find something they don't do and find objectionable and ban it. Alcohol kills more people per year than smoking does nothing on alcohol. They must not need the tax money didn't work to well for New Zealand

[@juanwilliams3423]

Smoking is way worse unless it is herbal

[@MackeyDeeez]

@@juanwilliams3423 really? Do people cause deadly car wrecks due to cigs? Do they cause broken families? I'm not for the state banning either of these things because some people can't control themselves, but this is a dumb point you're making

[@juanwilliams3423]

@@MackeyDeeez you're way off subject

[@MackeyDeeez]

@@juanwilliams3423 No, I'm not. You're saying smoking is worse than alcohol, which firstly is a very questionable claim. But you know the drink-loving UK isn't about to ban that. But if your standard is that it's bad for your health so it's not really a bad idea to ban it, it's time for the government to start banning a LOT of stuff, then.

[@wunderkarte]

It calms me to know that I can always make suicide. The one thing they can't control.

[@lucidity7079]

Raise the taxes on these cancer sticks every three months - and send all proceeds to cancer research. If anyone should be funding a cure - it's those, who's toxic smoke not only kills millions of smokers, but also - countless other non-smokers via second-hand smoke.

[@pugcudiler]

British Smoking Prohibition, worked well for America didn’t it, can’t wait to see a British Al Capone make the news

[@theodorrodriguez1800]

its like Rishi knows hes going down so he wants to suck the fun out of life before he does

[@eddenoy321]

Next they will ban porn ...its a slippery slope.

[@MrsKastell]

save money from the health sector and spend it on the Police to enforce the ban? Brilliant 😂

[@Menckenperson]

There you go, ban cigars and make thousands of honest Caribbean's and Central Americans unemployed and hand the business over to drug traffickers.

[@adi6293]

Weed has been illegal for what now, 100 years? Most of the people I know smoke it, so yeah good luck with the cigarettes 😂😂😂

[@deante0021]

People will not like it, but its about time honestly.

[@nr1785]

All country’s should ban smoking. The worst is when you go to hospital for an appointment and have to walk past smokers at the front of the hospital.

[@theantagonist2147]

How much further to the left are we going to move in the UK?

[@Hackney_Boy-DoesntReadReplies]

No, no, this is the "everything is woke" Tory party.

[@theantagonist2147]

@@Hackney_Boy-DoesntReadReplies Watch the actions, don't be fooled by the words.

[@jeroenwubbels7824]

Isle of the insane

[@deelite19]

ban tobacco. legalize weed.