Rishi Sunak’s position on smoking ban ‘unchanged’ as New Zealand scraps policy

Rishi Sunak said he plans to continue with his smoking ban after New Zealand reversed its own flagship policy.

New Zealand’s new coalition government has announced its intention to revoke legislation passed by the previous liberal administration designed to make it a smoke-free nation.

Last year the country became the first in the world to outlaw smoking for the next generation. The policy meant anyone born on or after 1 January 2009 would never be able to buy tobacco.

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It provided a blueprint for Mr Sunak’s tough measures announced at the Tory party conference in Manchester last month.

The prime minister said England’s ban means: “A 14-year-old today will never legally be sold a cigarette and… they and their generation can grow up smoke-free.”

Asked whether Mr Sunak would consider following Wellington’s lead, a spokeswoman for the prime minister said: “No, our position remains unchanged.

“We are committed to that.

“This is an important long-term decision and step to deliver a smoke-free generation which remains critically important.”

It means the UK will likely have the toughest smoking laws in the world once New Zealand’s reversal comes into effect.

The U-turn in New Zealand comes after a new coalition deal ended six weeks of negotiations following the general election on October 14.

The election saw the country shift to the right, with a win for the Conservative National Party under Christopher Luxon ending six years of a Labour government.

Under New Zealand’s proportional voting system, parties typically need to form alliances in order to command a governing majority.

Some Tory MPs have criticised Mr Sunak’s smoking ban, alongside the tobacco industry.

Hailed by health campaigners, critics have described it as “illiberal”, “anti-Conservative” and compared it to “creeping prohibition”.

Former prime minister Liz Truss is among those set to vote against the move, when it goes to a free vote in the Commons.

However the legislation is likely to pass, with Labour signalling it will support the measure.

Smoking is the UK’s biggest preventable killer, causing around one in four cancer deaths and leading to 64,000 deaths per year in England, according to Dr Javed Khan’s 2022 review into making smoking obsolete.

It is hoped the policy will prevent tens of thousands of deaths and save the NHS billions of pounds.

Downing Street said it expects up to 1.7 million fewer people to be smoking by 2075 as a result.