MHK to consider proposals to strengthen tobacco sales laws

Proposals to tighten restrictions on the sale of tobacco and nicotine products on the Isle of Man are to be considered by a committee.

Michelle Haywood had asked for permission to introduce a private member’s bill in the House of Representatives, but the MHK instead backed calls for a review of the proposed measures.

Dr Haywood argued that his proposals, which would prevent anyone born after 2008 from smoking legally, would “protect children” and “save lives”.

But Tim Crookall said the bill could have “unintended consequences” and the issue “would benefit from careful consideration”.

The three-member MHK panel comprising Dr Haywood, Stu Peters and Joney Faragher will consider proposed amendments to the Children and Young People Act 1966 and the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2006.

The proposals put forward by Dr Haywood would expand the definition of tobacco products to include new products containing nicotine and would strengthen regulations surrounding their advertising and promotion.

A “generational clause” that would “prevent our children from developing nicotine addiction” by banning those born after 2008 from purchasing tobacco products would also be included in the new laws.

The ban echoes proposals currently pending in the UK ahead of the general election, which would ban anyone born after 2009 from buying such items.

Mr Crookall said that while there would likely be “lots of long-term savings on healthcare”, there would also be “probably short-term financial implications, with wider issues around identification at the point of purchase, tariffs and broader taxation”.

His concerns were echoed by Chief Minister Alfred Cannan, who said the measures could “inadvertently create a black market” and the island could be seen as “an outlier” on the issue.

Dr Haywood said the proposed new legislation would close a “number of gaps” in current laws and could be “one of the biggest advances in public health in a very long time”.

The government could lose “around £300,000 a year in tobacco duty”, but that “doesn’t even begin to cover the cost of the harm caused by smoking and nicotine addiction”, she said.