People under the age of 25 could soon be banned from buying cigarettes under new plans the government is looking to introduce in England.
In what is a scheme that is said to have been proposed as a way to dramatically-reduce smoking trends among young people throughout Britain and create a “smoke free” country, and comes as an anti-smoking tsar has been recently-commissioned to deliver the matter, the possibility of banning the sale of cigarettes to those under 25 is now believed to be “on the table” after being given careful consideration.
The main responsibility of the anti-smoking tsar is to reduce the numbers of smokers within different age groups.
According to The Times, an upcoming independent review commissioned by Health Secretary Sajid Javid and led by former Barnardo’s CEO Javed Khan OBE is expected to launch England into its “smoke free” future by the goal of 2030 – which would mean that fewer than 5% of the adult population smokes.
The reported raising of cigarette sale age would be similar to a ban that is already initiated in New Zealand.
Currently in New Zealand, anyone who was born after 2008 is not able to buy tobacco items, and because of this, Mr Khan is reportedly considering whether an argument could be made for “raising the age to 19, 20, 21, or even 25” in the UK.
ADVERTISEMENT
Britain has set the target of being a smoke-free nation by 2030 / Credit: lilartsy | Julia Engel (via Unsplash)
“We are thinking seriously about the age of sale,” Mr Khan told The Times.
He continued: “Just look at the COVID experience, mass marketing has a big effect, it really works… the government went hell for leather, it made an enormous difference in vaccination rates.
“So why not do something like that again, if we really want to save people’s lives.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Echoing the sentiment and speaking on the intent to make Britain a smoke-free nation by 2030, Health Secretary Sajid Javid said in a statement on the government’s website: “The pandemic has shown the resilience of the British public and brought communities together to look after each other in the most challenging times.
“But it has also exposed chasms in our society – particularly in health.”
Mr Khan added: “I am very pleased to be leading this review into such an important area of public health [and] my independent findings will help highlight key interventions, which can help the government achieve its ambitions to be smoke-free by 2030 and tackle health disparities.”
Banning the sale of cigarettes to those under 25 in England is now believed to be “on the table” / Credit: Flickr
In England, there are currently said to be about six million smokers.
ADVERTISEMENT
Tobacco is also found to be the biggest cause of preventable death in the UK, and in the most-recent data from 2019, a recorded 64,000 smokers died from smoking, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Cancer Research estimates that the UK is currently set to miss the target of being smoke-free by 2030.
The charity says the country is not expected to smoke-free until at least 2037, as there is said to be a 20-year gap in smoking rates between the least and most deprived people, meaning the richest are expected to achieve smoke-free status in 2025, but the poorest are not expected until the mid-2040s.
Full list of road closures set to be in place for Manchester Day 2024
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Day is back for 2024 this weekend, and the full list of road closures set to be in place has been confirmed.
Now that schools are officially out across Greater Manchester, and the summer holidays are well and truly here, the hugely-popular Manchester Day is making a return once again this Saturday 27 July, and as always, it’s set to be “the day summer officially starts” in the city centre – with a massive celebration of “all things Mancunian” on the cards.
The theme of this year’s annual event is ‘Let The Games Begin’, and it’s inspired by the international summer of sport, just 2024 Olympics kicks off over in Paris.
The day will be packed full of free events and activities to get involved with.
Some city centre roads will be closed on Friday 26 and Saturday 27 July for Manchester Day.
These will include:
🛣️Deansgate 🛣️St Ann Street 🛣️St Mary’s Gate 🛣️Market Street 🛣️King Street
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) July 21, 2024
But of course, in order for the all the fun to go ahead as safely as possible, and as tends to be the case for events like these, Manchester City Council says it will need to make some temporary road closures to facilitate it.
The full list of road closures has now been confirmed by the Council, and there’s some major city centre thoroughfares set to be out of action.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Manchester Day is back for 2024 to celebrate the international summer of sport / Credit: Manchester City Council
Manchester Day 2024 – Road Closures
Saturday 27 July
From 6am to 11:59pm, Manchester City Council has confirmed that the following roads will be closed:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street) – access will be maintained to Marks and Spencer’s car park and Number One Deansgate.
St Ann Street (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street (Cross Street to Deansgate) – no access for deliveries.
All accessible bays, bus lanes, and taxi ranks within the closed areas will also be suspended during from 6pm on Friday 26 July to 11:59pm on Saturday 27 July.
The parking suspensions set to be in place are:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street)
St Ann Street – including the bays outside St Ann’s Church (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Southgate (St Mary’s Street to King Street West)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Victoria Street (Cathedral Approach to Deansgate)
Todd Street (Corporation Street to Station Approach)
King Street (Spring Gardens to Southgate)
South King Street (Ridgefield to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street West (Deansgate to St Mary’s Parsonage)
St James’s Square (John Dalton Street to South King Street)
Cross Street (King Street to Corporation Street)
Museum Street (Peter Street to Windmill Street)
Marsden Street (Cheapside to Brown Street)
Manchester Day 2024: Let The Games Begin! will take over the city centre on Saturday 27 July from 12pm-6pm.
Check out everything you need to know ahead of the event here.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete
Emily Sergeant
Work currently underway on the Rochdale via Oldham line is expected to take several weeks to complete.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has confirmed that land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has now “slowed”, and this means that detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works have been able to get underway.
In order for trams to run again on the crucial line from the city centre to the two major Greater Manchester towns, TfGM says that a small section of track has to be moved back – also known as ‘slewed’ – into its original position.
The overhead line poles also need to be repaired too, the transport operator revealed.
Rochdale line update
Land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has slowed, enabling detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works to get underway.
To get trams running again, a small section of track has to be moved back into its original position… pic.twitter.com/byERjitdi1
Unfortunately though, due to the “complex” nature of these works, and despite the fact that TfGM says it’s actively looking to “accelerate” the repairs, the project is expected to take up to five weeks to complete in full.
On top of this, the detailed ground investigations will also establish whether any further work to strengthen foundations beneath the track will be needed at a later date.
TfGM has apologised for the inconvenience caused to passengers.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete / Credit: TfGM
Speaking on the scale of works currently underway, and how long he expects them to continue for, Pete Sommers, who is TfGM’s Network Director for Metrolink, said: “I’m sorry for the impact this is having, and will continue to have, on people’s journeys.
“We are working to get trams running through the area again, but this remains a complex and challenging issue and it could still be a few weeks before this happens.
“We will of course keep passengers updated, and I’d encourage people to check our social media channels and website for the latest information and advice.”