# Stop children ever buying cigarettes

> “These changes will mean our kids will never be able to buy a cigarette, preventing them getting hooked and protecting their health both now and in the future.”
>
> — Rishi Sunak, Prime Minister, Conservative Party; Press release (Prime Minister's Office), 4 October 2023

- **Status:** Legislated
- **Status ladder:** Promised → In plan → Legislated → Funded → Delivering → Delivered
- **Policy area:** [Health](https://ledgergov.uk/promises/area/health)
- **Speaker:** [Rishi Sunak](https://ledgergov.uk/actor/rishi-sunak), Prime Minister
- **Party:** [Conservative Party](https://ledgergov.uk/actor/conservatives)
- **Made on:** 4 October 2023
- **Where:** Press release (Prime Minister's Office)
- **Cost a year:** No costing published
- **Who it affects:** People born on or after 1 January 2009, who could never legally be sold tobacco, and the shops that sell it
- **When:** Not stated; the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 brings the ban in on 1 January 2027
- **Paid for by:** Not stated when it was announced
- **Quote source:** https://www.gov.uk/government/news/prime-minister-to-create-smokefree-generation-by-ending-cigarette-sales-to-those-born-on-or-after-1-january-2009 (checked word for word at its source on 20 October 2026; Open Government Licence v3.0)
- **Last updated:** 20 October 2026
- **Card:** https://ledgergov.uk/promise/uk-smokefree-generation-2023

## Where it stands

The plan was a law making it an offence to sell tobacco to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009, first announced for England. The government that followed brought in its own Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which became law on 29 April 2026 as the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026. Section 1 makes it an offence in England and Wales to sell tobacco to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009, and section 175 brings that into force on 1 January 2027, with matching sections for Scotland and Northern Ireland. The card moves when the ban is in force.

## Timeline

- 4 October 2023, Promised: The Prime Minister announces a law to end cigarette sales to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009
- 29 April 2026, Legislated: The Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 becomes law: selling tobacco to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009 is an offence from 1 January 2027 ([evidence](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2026/18/contents))

## About the cost

No cost was given for the ban. On 29 January 2024 the government announced £30 million a year of new funding for enforcement agencies (Border Force, HMRC and Trading Standards) to carry out the smokefree generation plan and its vaping measures.

Costing sources:
- [Department of Health and Social Care and others: Disposable vapes banned to protect children's health (29 Jan 2024)](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/disposable-vapes-banned-to-protect-childrens-health)

## Sources

- [Prime Minister's Office: Prime Minister to create 'smokefree generation' by ending cigarette sales to those born on or after 1 January 2009 (4 Oct 2023)](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/prime-minister-to-create-smokefree-generation-by-ending-cigarette-sales-to-those-born-on-or-after-1-january-2009)
- [Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 (legislation.gov.uk)](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2026/18/contents)
- [Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 1: sale of tobacco etc](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2026/18/section/1)
- [Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 175: commencement](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2026/18/section/175)
- [Department of Health and Social Care and others: Disposable vapes banned to protect children's health (29 Jan 2024)](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/disposable-vapes-banned-to-protect-childrens-health)

## Checks

- Checked automatically by AI Journalist, not yet verified by an editor.
- Checked by AI Journalist (automated) on 20 October 2026.

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