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New Tobacco Laws Are Trying To Make You Feel Gross About Smoking

New Tobacco Laws Are Trying To Make You Feel Gross About Smoking

Standardised packaging.

Josh Teal

Josh Teal

Game-changing laws regarding tobacco have come into action today.

Yep, from today tobacco companies must sell cigarettes with the branding on the packaging restricted to a standard size, font and colour.

All packs must have a minimum of 20 cigarettes to ensure they're big enough and must be dark green with images highlighting the damaging effects of smoking.

As if this wasn't bad enough for smokers, menthol cigarettes will now be totally phased out until they are completely banned in 2020.

There is a bright side to this, though. Vaping advertisement will be banned from today, too.

This is what your ciggies will look like now. Credit: PA

British Lung Foundation chief executive Dr Penny Woods said: "For too long glitzy, cleverly designed packaging has lured young people into smoking, a habit that takes the lives of half of all long-term smokers.

"Australia introduced plain packaging in 2012 and has already seen a decline in smoking rates. If just a fraction of the 200,000 children in the UK who start smoking a year are discouraged, thousands of lives will be saved."

Director of smokers group Forest, Simon Clark, said the new packaging laws "treat adults like children and teenagers like idiots".

Sorry, Leo!

He added: "Everyone knows the health risks of smoking and no-one starts because of the packaging.

"Australia was the first country to introduce standardised packaging and it hasn't worked. There is no evidence to suggest that smoking rates have fallen among children or adults as a result of the policy.

"Plain packaging is a declaration o war on consumers because the aim is to de-normalise not just the product but also the millions of adults who enjoy smoking and don't want to quit."

Words by Josh Teal

Featured Image Credit:

Topics: Smoking