According to draft legislation released on Tuesday, Ireland intends to raise the legal minimum age to purchase tobacco to 21, making it the highest age limit in the European Union.
According to government officials, the cabinet has approved the proposed law raising the age from the current 18 years old. The law is intended to hasten the decline in adult smoking rates in Ireland.
In 2025, a law was introduced in Latvia to raise the minimum age to 20. The legal drinking and tobacco age in the majority of EU member states is 18, whereas in the US it is 21.
Ireland was the first EU member to impose an indoor smoking ban in 2004, and many other nations soon followed.
According to data from the Department of Health, 18% of adults over the age of 15 smoke.
Irish Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, who made the announcement, said that data from the US indicates that raising the sale age to 21 “will act to limit the social sources of cigarettes” to minors.
“They will be less likely to be in social groups with persons who can legally purchase cigarettes,” stated Donnelly.
Research indicates that individuals between the ages of 18 and 21 are particularly vulnerable to starting to smoke, he added.
The bill will stipulate that individuals who are currently between the ages of 18 and 21 will not be covered by the expanded prohibition on sales to minors.
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