Anti-smoking bill to become law in New Zealand after clearing final vote in Parliament

UPI ^ | December 13, 2022 | By A.L. Lee

[Oldeconomybuyer]

Dec. 13 (UPI) -- The New Zealand Parliament has approved a measure that raises the age in which people can legally purchase tobacco products as part of an ongoing effort to permanently ban cigarette sales and turn a new generation of young people against smoking.

The groundbreaking law, which takes effect on Jan. 1, is thought to be the first time any nation in the world has enacted a measure that would increase the legal age to smoke every year until the entire population phases out. In 2023, tobacco cannot be sold to anyone younger than 14 years old. But in 2024, the legal age will go up to 15, followed by 16 in 2025, and so on.

Lawmakers attached an array of measures to the bill that will significantly raise the cost of cigarettes, lower their nicotine content, and take them out of supermarkets and convenience stores and restrict their availability to places like smoke shops and tobacco stores.

Right now 6,000 stores throughout New Zealand can legally sell cigarettes, but after Jan. 1 only 600 of those outlets will be allowed to have tobacco products on the shelves.

[nickcarraway]

Lower their nicotine content? So manufacturers will have to make cigarettes specifically for new zealand? Isn’t the nicotine content what protected people against covid?

[nickcarraway]

Apparently they’re old enough now. But they will never legally be able to after this year.

[Revel]

They took their guns. Those people know live under communism. A quicker death would be a blessing.

[Codeflier]

I don’t think we need the Anglosphere qualifier. Many other countries have situations where the people have no choice and are under the rule of others. NZ voters seem to love their insanity, which makes NZ the most insane of all to me.