The rolling cycle of health-destroying addiction can be stopped by this one simple measure, says Emily Marston
Having read that even Big Tobacco is now apparently willing to fall on its sword for the sake of our children’s future, or whatever (Tobacco firm Philip Morris calls for ban on cigarettes within decade, 25 July), I wish to put forward that the simplest way to approach this, instead of endlessly trying to warn people off the cigs with public health campaigns, would be to ban the sale of tobacco to anyone born after 2005.
This would prevent the uptake of smoking by a new cohort of young people, while tobacco products could remain available for another decade in which existing smokers would have ample opportunity to curb their addictions. A flat cohort ban like this would also make ID checks quicker (no maths involved), and harder to falsify, as the age discrepancy of new smokers would become more obvious over time.