Kathmandu. The UK has passed a historic bill to ban the purchase of cigarettes for a long time with the goal of protecting future generations from smoking.

This is seen as a big turning point in the health sector. This law passed by the parliament has given a clear indication that the next generation will gradually move away from the reach of cigarettes.

Hazel Cheeseman, chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health, an anti-smoking organization, said the breakthrough comes after decades of campaigning to control smoking. He called the move a decisive achievement for public health protection.

According to the bill on tobacco products and vapes, people born after December 31, 2008, will not be able to buy cigarettes for life. It will remove the current age-based limit and introduce a system of raising the minimum age every year, so that today’s teenagers will be deprived of buying cigarettes in the future.

The law will require the formal approval of King Charles III before it can take effect, which is generally considered only a formal process. The government will then be able to enforce stricter regulations on the flavoring, packaging and distribution of tobacco products, vaping devices and nicotine-derived products.

Currently, there is a ban on the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products or vapes to anyone under the age of 18 in the UK. But the new law has made this law more stringent and has led to the end of smoking in the long term. For this reason, the UK has now become one of the countries with the strictest smoking control policy in the world.

New Zealand had introduced a similar law in 2022, but the previous government repealed it. The UK’s move has been presented as a long-term policy commitment.

According to statistics, the number of smokers in the UK has fallen by almost two-thirds since the 1970s. But there are still about 6.4 million people, or about 13 percent of the total population, smoking. Government statistics show that about 80,000 people die each year due to smoking, making it the biggest preventable cause of death, disability and poor health.

Health Minister Wes Streeting said he believed the new law would make Britain’s children the “first smoke-free generation”. He said it would protect future generations from lifelong addiction and the serious health risks it poses.