Craig Smith, the Conservative parliamentary candidate for North West Leicestershire, has welcomed legislation to progressively ban smoking as it passed its next parliamentary stage.
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill has now passed its Second Reading and will ensure children who turn 15 this year, or are younger, will never legally be sold cigarettes or other tobacco products, alongside measures to crack down on youth vaping and strengthening enforcement measures.
Craig Smith said “I’m proud that this government has grasped the importance of tackling this critical public health issue. We have come to a time when we understand the huge damage that tobacco does to our health and to our public services. There can be no excuses for letting our children and future generations succumb to its harms.
“I hate it when government removes our freedoms, so it’s right that the ban is a progressive one, but I’m also clear that there’s nothing un-conservative about taking action now. It was Mrs Thatcher who introduced the law to mandate wearing seatbelts in cars, who now thinks that was the wrong thing to do? No one. There’s nothing un-conservative about protecting the health of our children.
“We know that 73% of people support a progressive tobacco ban and only 10% are against. It was deeply disappointing that our sitting MP abstained and chose to go to a social event instead.”
