Malaysia is striving to be the first country in the world to completely ban smoking from the youngest generation.
The Ministry of Health has announced that the Tobacco Control and Smoking Bill will be introduced to Parliament in July. If passed, the new legislation would prohibit people born in 2005 and later from buying, possessing or consuming tobacco products, including cigarettes and e-cigarettes or e-cigarettes.
In doing so, the law would ban access to tobacco and nicotine not just for young people, but all future generations, a strategy the ministry called an “end of generation game”:
“This is the end”
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the law, if passed and effectively enforced, would lead to “significantly improved health outcomes” for many years to come.
“[This is] The end of smoking and tobacco. Some people think that a ban will never be the solution; I am determined to get the job done,” the minister said.
Government statistics show that one in five Malaysians aged 15 and above smoke, and 40% of them are men. There are more than 27,000 smoking-related deaths in the country each year.
large black market
But some disagree with the proposed law, arguing that such bans would never work and would just push more smokers onto the black market.
Malaysia is known to have a thriving black market for tobacco products. A 2020 study by the Federation of Malaysian Tobacco Manufacturers concluded that more than 60% of cigarettes consumed in the country are sourced from the black market, mainly supplied by illegally imported cigarettes, which are often sold for less than Half of legal cigarettes.
The federation said a tobacco ban would exacerbate the problem and “severely jeopardize the livelihoods of our 20,000 businessmen”, noting that cigarette sales account for about 30% of its revenue.
no international experience
Since no country has implemented it, there is no international empirical value on comprehensive tobacco bans.
New Zealand recently announced plans to raise the legal smoking age by one year each year and permanently ban the sale of tobacco to people born after 2008.
Since 2010, Singapore has been planning to completely ban the use of tobacco products for all people born in 2000 and later, a proposal that has received strong public support.
Brunei has introduced strict tobacco licensing policies, import taxes, smoke-free zones and a total ban on e-cigarettes, making tobacco products nearly impossible to obtain.
higher legal age
The Australian state of Tasmania plans to raise the legal smoking age to 21 and advocates for legislation to ban the sale of tobacco to people born after 2000.
Back in 2004, Bhutan became the first country to completely ban the cultivation, harvesting, production and sale of tobacco products, with small subsidies for personal possession and use.
Malaysia is striving to be the first country in the world to completely eliminate smoking from the youngest generation. The Ministry of Health has announced that the Tobacco Control and Smoking Bill will be introduced to Parliament in July. If passed, the new legislation would prohibit people born in 2005 and later from buying, possessing or consuming tobacco products, including cigarettes and e-cigarettes or e-cigarettes. In doing so, the law would ban access to tobacco and nicotine not only for young people, but for all future generations, a strategy the ministry called an “end of generation game”: “This…
Malaysia is striving to be the first country in the world to completely eliminate smoking from the youngest generation.
The Ministry of Health has announced that the Tobacco Control and Smoking Bill will be introduced to Parliament in July. If passed, the new legislation would prohibit people born in 2005 and later from buying, possessing or consuming tobacco products, including cigarettes and e-cigarettes or e-cigarettes.
In doing so, the law would ban access to tobacco and nicotine not just for young people, but for all future generations, a strategy the ministry called an “end of generation game”:
“This is the end”
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the law, if passed and effectively enforced, would lead to “significantly improved health outcomes” for many years to come.
“[This is] The end of smoking and tobacco. Some people think that a ban will never be the solution; I am determined to get the job done,” the minister said.
Government statistics show that one in five Malaysians aged 15 and above smoke, and 40% of them are men. There are more than 27,000 smoking-related deaths in the country each year.
large black market
But some disagree with the proposed law, arguing that such bans will never work and will only push more smokers onto the black market.
Malaysia is known to have a thriving black market for tobacco products. A 2020 study by the Federation of Malaysian Tobacco Manufacturers concluded that more than 60% of cigarettes consumed in the country are sourced from the black market, mainly supplied by illegally imported cigarettes, which are often sold for less than Half of legal cigarettes.
The federation said a tobacco ban would exacerbate the problem and “severely jeopardize the livelihoods of our 20,000 businessmen”, noting that cigarette sales account for about 30% of its revenue.
no international experience
Since no country has implemented it, there is no international empirical value on comprehensive tobacco bans.
New Zealand recently announced plans to raise the legal smoking age by one year each year and permanently ban the sale of tobacco to people born after 2008.
Since 2010, Singapore has been planning to completely ban the use of tobacco products for all people born in 2000 and later, a proposal that has received strong public support.
Brunei has introduced strict tobacco licensing policies, import taxes, smoke-free zones and a total ban on e-cigarettes, making tobacco products nearly impossible to obtain.
higher legal age
The Australian state of Tasmania plans to raise the legal smoking age to 21 and advocates for legislation to ban the sale of tobacco to people born after 2000.
Back in 2004, Bhutan became the first country to completely ban the cultivation, harvesting, production and sale of tobacco products, with small subsidies for personal possession and use.
