Cigarette Smoking and Law

More than one billion people all over the world enjoy cigarette smoking. It has been a deliberate attempt to reduce the smoking population by various governments and non governmental organization as it was reported that some of the constituents of cigarette are harmful to human bodies.

As the number of people have smoking habits is always on rise, huge money was spent by manufacturers in advertising their products. Many cigarette smoking companies started advertisement on radio and television for promoting their cigarette brands during early 60s and 70s. First time in United States of America, Public Health Cigarette Smoking act came into existence On Jan 2, 1971. It was passed by then president Richard Nixon on April 1, 1970. The law provides a total ban on cigarette advertisement on television. Later it was reported that the law had not been able to reduce the smokers. It was the first attempt to reduce the number of cigarette smokers in the country.

The government of various countries always tried to reduce the number of cigarette smokers in their country. In all the fifty states of United States of America, the sale of cigarette to children below 18 years of age was prohibited by law since 1998. Later in some of the states in US, the minimum purchase age for cigarette or other tobacco products was raised to 19 years and in the coming years other states can make similar law, however in a couple of states, parents or any other guardian can provide cigarette to the children below 18 years of age.

Although majority of the countries have a minimum legally allowed purchasing age of 18 years, there are a few countries which do not have any legal minimum age for purchasing. A few countries do allow smoking to the children above 16 years of age. Some high smoking countries such as Turkey and Japan also have 18 and 20 years minimum legal age for purchasing cigarettes. In some provinces of Canada, there is a minimum legal age requirement of 19 years and few others including Quebec and Alberta have a legal age of 18 years. The legal age as mentioned above is for purchasing a cigarette, however in Alberta province of Canada, possessing cigarette or tobacco is also punishable by law.

Similarly in United Kingdom, cigarette can legally be sold to a child above 16 years of age; however a child can buy or attempt to buy cigarette even if he is below 16 years of age and according to the prevailing law of the land, it is not illegal. The law is likely to be modified in the coming years and government has a plan to rise the minimum legal age to 18.

These were the law of some countries for curbing the cigarette smoking in those countries; however these laws have minimal effect on reducing the number of cigarette smokers. In many countries the vending machines are placed at several common places and therefore it is hard to monitor the sale of the cigarette through these machines. So, although all countries have taken steps to reduce the child smokers, these are rarely effective.