Generational ban a non-starter

Although six out of 10 Norwegians support a proposal from the Norwegian Medical Association (Legeforeningen – NMA) to ban the sale of tobacco products to anyone born after 2000, the government has no plans to impose such a ban, according to a story in The Local.

The NMA said in January that Norway should create a ‘tobacco-free’ generation by 2035, and it suggested that banning the sale of tobacco products to anyone born after 2000 should be a first step towards achieving that goal.

Now, a new survey conducted by Respons Analyse on behalf of the NMA indicates that Norwegians are in favor of the idea.

More than 60 percent of survey respondents said they were positive about the proposal, while 31 percent opposed it.

NMA president Marit Hermansen said in January that it was not a basic human right to begin using tobacco.

“We have long had the policy of phasing out smoking by 2035,” Hermansen was quoted as telling Aftenposten . “This is a measure to achieve this goal,”.

“It shouldn’t be forbidden to smoke, but we want young people to not get started with tobacco.”

But while the majority of Norwegians might agree with NMA, Health Minister Bent Høie told Aftenposten on Sunday that the government had no plans to take up any legislation that would lead to a ban of tobacco sales.