Will the Next Generation Be Smoke-Free? This Surprising Bill Suggests Yes

An unprecedented bill in Israel was presented yesterday (Monday) in the Knesset. The proposal calls for banning the sale of cigarettes to anyone born from 2010 onwards.

Last month, the Ministry of Health published alarming data about the number and age of smokers in Israel. The data indicated that 22.5% of Israelis aged 21 and over smoke, with the total number of smokers in Israel reaching approximately 1.2 million people. Disturbingly, the publications also revealed that children in Israel are experimenting with cigarette smoking at a very young age. It also showed that 2.6% of Jewish boys smoke cigarettes as early as middle school.

To combat the dangerous trend, the bill seeks to prohibit the sale of tobacco products to anyone born after the year 2010, aiming for a gradual yet complete weaning of future generations from dependence.

During the formulation of the law and its preparation for various readings in the Knesset, the year might even be moved forward to 2007. Meanwhile, the sale of cigarettes will not be prohibited to older cohorts, thus avoiding harm to the existing public of smokers.

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According to the bill, purchasing tobacco products would require presenting identification. If the buyer's birth year is after 2010, they will not be able to buy cigarettes. The new law's penalties will be similar to those currently prohibiting cigarette sales to those under 18, with fines reaching tens of thousands of shekels for each sale. The law will ban the sale of tobacco products, not their purchase, so no criminal responsibility will be imposed on consumers, but sellers will risk fines as well as criminal conviction.

Upon presenting the proposal, MK Zandberg told 'Yedioth': "The health of future generations rests on our shoulders. For decades we stood by and allowed the tobacco threat to continue claiming thousands of victims each year while limited efforts directed at combating it only aimed at reducing smoking rather than eradicating it. Laws like raising the smoking age are meant to convey a message that adults can smoke, but the message should be the opposite, clear, and unequivocal: we must not allow our children to join the deadly smoking circle."

The bill was submitted by MK Tamar Zandberg, with the support of MKs Yael German, Yehuda Glick, and Dov Khenin. The Cancer Society is a partner in the initiative and welcomed it, as did the Association of Public Health Physicians in Israel.