New Zealand imposes lifetime ban on youth buying cigarettes
New Zealand has passed into law a unique plan to phase out tobacco smoking by imposing a lifetime ban on young people buying cigarettes
By NICK PERRY
Published - Dec 13, 2022, 02:45 AM ET
Last Updated - Jun 23, 2023, 06:19 AM EDT
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand on Tuesday passed into law a unique plan to phase out tobacco smoking by imposing a lifetime ban on young people buying cigarettes.
The law states that tobacco can't ever be sold to anybody born on or after Jan. 1, 2009.
It means the minimum age for buying cigarettes will keep going up and up. In theory, somebody trying to buy a pack of cigarettes 50 years from now would need ID to show they were at least 63 years old.
But health authorities hope smoking will fade away well before then. They have a stated goal of making New Zealand smoke-free by 2025.
