Policy responses and statements

Name of organisation:

Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (DHSSPS)

Name of policy document:

Minimum Age of Sale of Tobacco Products

Deadline for response:

18 January 2008

Background: The Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety, Michael McGimpsey MLA, launched a consultation exercise on whether the Department should use the power contained in the Smoking (Northern Ireland) Order 2006, to amend, by regulations, the age of sale of tobacco products.

At present it is illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone under 16 years old. The consultation questionnaire sets out three options on the minimum age of sale of tobacco products. These are to:-

• continue with the current age limit of 16;
• increase the age limit to 17; or
• increase the age limit to 18.

The questionnaire also sought views on aspects of the equality conclusions. The consultation package includes:

• the Draft Children and Young Persons (Sale of Tobacco etc) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007;
• the Draft Smoke-Free (Exemptions, Vehicles, Penalties and Discounted Amounts) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007;
• an Integrated Impact Assessment Overview (Annex 1); and
• a Partial Regulatory Impact Assessment (Annex 2).

Download this consultation response as a .pdf

Copies of this response are available from:

Lesley Lockhart,
Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh,
9 Queen Street,
Edinburgh,
EH2 1JQ.

Tel: 0131 225 7324 ext 608
Fax: 0131 220 3939

[5 January 2008]