Anti-smoking bill

[laurence2]

The minimum age for buying cigarettes is to rise from 16 to 18 under the goverments anti-smoking bill, does anyone believe that their will be an significant drop in youngsters buying cigarettes due to this bill ?

Apologies if this has been posted previously.

[4getmenot]

No if children from the ages of 10 can smoke nowadays I dont think it makes a difference what age they rise it to, they will still get cigarettes from somewhere.

[AliFlump]

It may stop children buying them themselves as they will have to look older but there will always be the older kid selling cigs at the school gates for 50p each like there was at mine.

[Goodsoulette]

i think its a great idea, I would be more likely to buy a 14 yr old a can of special brew than a pack of fags. I dont think many adults would buy children fags.

Maybe i wouldnt have been able to start at such a young age (13) if the laws were different then, cause as I may have been able to pass as a 16 yr old i certainly couldnt an 18 yr old. I add I gave up after 10 yrs by which point I ended up smoking 60 a day and had a smoking caused laryngitis which caused a permanent scar on my voice box, which means i cant shout very well, and I sound like Bonnie Tyler now.

A massive step in the right direction. Make them rediculously more expensive too.

[Lonnie]

I think its just a cosmetic vote catcher, the success of it will be so minimal as to make no difference. It really, is up to the parents to stop their youngsters from smoking.

[noxlumos]

No I don't think it will stop kids obtaining cigarettes at all, they'll just get their older brothers and sisters to get them for them etc or older mates. Kids have to not want to smoke on order not to, and whilst our schools churn out droves of kids who have been taught to be emotionally dependant on each other for approval then we'll always have kids who essentially don't want to smoke, caving in to peer pressure.Age is nothing to do with it.

[Gef]

It's got nothing to do with schools nox. But, there again, schools are blamed for everything.

[Grunty]

One of the attractions of smoking is that children see it as grown up. Won't they now see it as even more grown up?

[noxlumos]

Gef, with respect it has everything to do with the fact that from the cradle to the grave people are taught to conform to what the rest of their peer group is doing. It's not my idea, it's a sociological fact.

[Greedyfly]

Possible slight decrease not alot though - but the way I feel to stop smoking is to keep rising the prices. Thats what stopped me.

[Supernick]

Don't know about anyone lese, but the kids at my school started on discarded cigarette butts. They'd spend ages looking for ones that had enough of the cigarette left on it to smoke! Kids will still be able to pinch them of their parents or siblings, they'll be able to buy them illegally from unscrupulous vendors, and I doubt it'll make too much difference. Probably is just a vote catcher as Lonnie said, but if I can suspend my cynicism for just a second, it's got to be a good idea to at least try and stop kids from smoking.

[laurence2]

Thanking you all for your post, Personally i think their will be no decrease, agreed that price rises/ goverment campains etc should have a bearing, But as AliFlump pointed out, kids will buy them from older children etc at schools, and we have been for years now getting alot of imported illegal cigarettes which are sold on the cheap, so prices up = underground trade.

Children are a target with cigarettes going underground, and if the goverment can win this battle it will go along way to cleaning up one if not the dirtiest habits ever

[Goodsoulette]

Supernick - were the kids at your school all a bit skanky. that is gross, we just stole our parents and lets face it when you are 12 or 13 there is at least a handful of girls that look 16/17 who can buy them for you. raise the age not many young girls look that much older.

[Supernick]

I went to a supposedly 'good' school. Perhaps I should have chosen different people to hang out with! I hasten to add that at no point of my life have I tried to smoke a discarded fag end.

[jno]

I think Goodsoulette is on the right track: this probably isn't actually intended to stop 16-18 year olds buying them, it's to stop 13-15 year olds who look a bit older but don't look 18. They'll all just have to move to Glasgow and try heroin instead.

[Gef]

nox, I understand what you are saying about peer group pressure but it is not the fault of the schools.

[skinnylynny]

You sons of bitchees.....bills a saint