Denmark has announced plans to ban people born after 2010 from ever purchasing cigarettes or any other nicotine product.
In a press conference, Health Minister Magnus Heunicke said: “Our hope is that all people born in 2010 and later will never start smoking or using nicotine-based products.
“If necessary, we are ready to ban the sale (of these products) to this generation by progressively raising the age limit.”
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According to a poll commissioned by the Danish Cancer Society, 64 per cent of surveyed people favoured the ban, with 67 per cent of those being aged between 18-34.
The current law allows Danish citizens over the age of 18 to buy cigarettes, however, Heunicke said that around 31 per cent of people between the ages of 15-29 smoke.
The Health Minister also added that smoking is the leading cause of cancer in the country and causes around 13,600 deaths each year.
In December last year, New Zealand also unveiled plans to prohibit anyone born after 2008 from ever buying tobacco-based products.
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This law will be implemented in 2027 and will raise the legal smoking age from 18 every year.
Along with increasing the smoking age, regulations will also be enforced to make purchasing cigarettes increasingly difficult.
These new laws will reduce the number of shops selling tobacco products from 2024 and they will only be allowed to offer products with a low level of nicotine from 2025.
Associate Health Minister Ayesha Verrall said at the time: “We want to make sure young people never start smoking so we will make it an offence to sell or supply smoked tobacco products to new cohorts of youth.
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“People aged 14 when the law comes into effect will never be able to legally purchase tobacco,” she said.
New Zealand's Smokefree Action Plan aims to reduce the number of smokers to 5 per cent by 2025.
Many health experts welcomed New Zealand's ‘world first’ plan to create a smoking-free generation.
Dr Natalie Walker, director of the Center for Addiction Research at the University of Auckland, said: “New Zealand once again leads the world – this time with a cutting-edge smoke-free 2025 implementation plan – it’s truly a game changer.”
Charisa Bossinakis