Removal of smoking law criticised by doctor

Press, 13 February 1982, Page 1

Removal of smoking law criticised by doctor

The removal of legislation concerning smoking by juveniles has been sharply criticised by the medical director of the National Heart Foundation, Dr D. R. Hay. Children under 15 can now legally buy cigarettes for their own use because of the replacement from February 1 of the 1927 Police Offences Act. Dr Hay said that some outdated sections of the act needed revision but the clause concerning the selling of tobacco to children should have been retained. He said the Advisory Committee on Smoking and Health had recommended that the clause be incorporated into the Toxic Substances Act, but this had been rejected. In the extreme the way was now clear for cigarette vending machines to be set up in school or for school shops to have cigarettes on sale.

“I can only hope that head-

masters and school authorities will have more wisdom and concern for the health of children than some of our legislators,” said Dr Hay. A report in 1979 by the World Health Organisation said that it was generally accepted that tobacco should not be sold to minors and that legislation to that effect was essential if national smoking education and control programmes were to be taken seriotisly, he said. “I am not too worried that there have seldom been any prosecutions under the old clause, or that it cannot be enforced. I see this legislation as a sign of government concern about smoking among young people. “Legislation plays some part in smoking control measures and I am concerned when we discard a law so easily and offer nothing in its place. All we have now is the inclusion of tobacco as a toxic substance under the Toxic Substances

Act,” said Dr Hav.