The government’s plans to introduce the world’s first smoking ban, stop the sale of energy drinks to children and modernise mental health laws are “groundbreaking” and will save thousands of lives, health leaders say.
Labour will also impose restrictions on the sale and marketing of e-cigarettes to children and take tougher action on junk food advertising, all in an effort to improve the health of future generations.
Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents the entire healthcare system in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, said: “The King’s Speech from the Throne sets out a number of ground-breaking commitments that will improve the health of the nation – with reforms to the Mental Health Act and legislation to create a smoke-free generation top of the list.
“Our members will also support the focus on children and young people, with measures to tackle the impact of junk food and high-caffeine energy drinks a welcome starting point.”
The Tobacco and E-Cigarette Act will gradually raise the age at which people can purchase tobacco, meaning future generations will never be able to do so legally again.
This makes it illegal for anyone born after 1 January 2009 to legally smoke, making the UK the first country in the world to ban smoking.
Rishi Sunak had promised to push through the bill when he was prime minister, but dropped it in the “wash-up” process, in which outgoing governments must choose which policies to accelerate and which to drop, following lobbying by the world’s biggest tobacco companies, first exposed by the Guardian.
The bill also paves the way for changes to the marketing and branding of vapes to reduce their appeal to children. Flavors like bubble gum and cotton candy could also face restrictions, as research shows that young people prefer these flavors over flavors like menthol.
There are also restrictions on the packaging and display of products such as tobacco pouches that could tempt children to smoke. Trading Standards officers will have greater powers to fine retailers who sell vapes and tobacco to under-18s.
England’s chief medical officer, Prof Sir Chris Whitty, who has pleaded with MPs to ignore tobacco company lobbying and pass the bill, said the move to create a smoke-free country would be “a major step forward in public health”.
Dr Ian Walker, executive director of policy at Cancer Research UK, predicted the ban would have “a hugely positive impact on the health of the nation”.
Association of Directors of Public Health chairman Greg Fell said: “Phasing out smoking will save thousands of lives, help protect the next generation from addiction to this deadly product and do more to reduce the unacceptably wide gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions than any other measure.”
The President of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, Professor Steve Turner, described the move as “a significant milestone” on the UK’s path to having “the healthiest generation of children in our history”.
People incarcerated under the Mental Health Care Act will have more choices and rights under new legislation presented in the King’s Speech from the Throne.
The Mental Health Act aims to put more power in the hands of patients and put them at the centre of decisions about their care. It amends the 1983 Act, which Labour has described as “woefully out of date”, to bring it “into the 21st century”.
The chief executive of mental health charity Mind, Dr Sarah Hughes, hailed the changes as a “once in a generation opportunity”.
However, the charity’s chief executive Sane warned that the renovation would need to be accompanied by increased funding for staff, hospital beds and community services.
“While mental health care is so impoverished and there is limited access to treatments and therapies, the vision for improved rights and individual choice cannot be realized,” said Marjorie Wallace.