Ireland is planning to raise the legal minimum age for purchasing tobacco to 21, as per draft legislation announced on Tuesday.
If approved, this change would make Ireland’s age limit the highest in the European Union, up from the current age of 18.
The proposed law, aimed at accelerating the decline of Ireland’s adult smoking rate, has already received approval from the cabinet.
In a similar move, Latvia has also introduced legislation to raise the minimum age for tobacco purchase to 20 by 2025.
While most EU countries have an age limit of 18 for purchasing both tobacco and alcohol, the United States has an age limit of 21 for both substances.
In 2004, Ireland became the first EU member to implement an indoor smoking ban, a move that influenced many other countries.
Currently, the Department of Health reports that 18 percent of the population over the age of 15 are smokers.
Irish Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, who announced the measure, referred to evidence from the US indicating that increasing the age of tobacco sales to 21 “will act to limit the social sources of cigarettes” for young people.
“They will be less likely to be in social groups with persons who can legally purchase cigarettes,” said Donnelly.
He also pointed out that evidence suggests people are at high risk of becoming smokers between the ages of 18 and 21.
The proposed bill will not affect individuals currently between 18 and 21 years old.
Additionally, it will not impact the minimum legal age for the sale of vaping products, which was set at 18 last December.
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