General Article ASH Wales welcomes new laws protecting children from smoking

Topic Selected: Smoking and Health
This article is 6 years old. Click here to view the latest articles for this topic.

New laws to protect children and young people from the harms of tobacco have been hailed as a major public health achievement by tobacco control campaign group ASH Wales.

The Public Health (Wales) Bill successfully passed in the Senedd  (Tuesday, 16 May) following a final vote by Assembly Members.

The new laws will restrict smoking in children’s playgrounds, school grounds and hospital sites and pave the way for a retail register of all tobacco sellers. The legislation follows a campaign by ASH Wales which persuaded every local authority in Wales to implement voluntary smoking bans in their children’s playgrounds and has seen 11 councils ban smoking at the gates of their primary schools.

Research shows young people are highly influenced by others smoking around them – those with a parent who smokes are 70% more likely to take up the habit. Smokefree areas also protect from second-hand smoke whilst ‘denormalising’ the deadly habit. Almost half of long-term smokers begin smoking befor...

Would you like to see the rest of this article and all the other benefits that Issues Online can provide with?

Sign up now for an immediate no obligation FREE TRIAL and view the entire collection