Tag Archives: tobacco and vapes bill

How did Lib Dems vote on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill?

By The Voice | Wed 27th November 2024 - 12:24 pm

Last night the House of Commons passed the Bill which would introduce a smoke free generation by prohibiting the sale of tobacco to anyone born after 2009.

This is one of those issues where you can reach either conclusion from Liberal principles. This is why it was a free vote in Parliament.

So how did Liberal Democrat MPs vote?

38 voted in favour, 7 voted against and 27 did not vote.

Those in favour: Steff Aquarone, Alison Bennett, Jess Borwn-Fuller, Charlotte Cane, David Chadwick, Danny Chambers, Victoria Collins, Daisy Cooper, Adam Dance, Steve Darling, Lee Dillon, Sarah Dyke, Richard Foord, Andrew George, Marie Goldman, Monica Harding, Wera Hobhouse, Christine Jardine, Liz Jarvis, Ben Maguire, Mike Martin, Brian Mathew, Calum Miller, John Milne, Layla Moran, Edward Morello, Helen Morgan, Tessa Munt, Sarah Olney, Manuela Perteghella, Ian Roome, Vikki Slade, Jamie Stone, Luke Taylor, Cameeron Thomas, Max Wilkinson, Martin Wrigley and Claire Young.

Those against: Gideon Amos, Josh Babarinde, Bobby Dean, Tim Farron, Will Forster, Rachel Gilmour and Charlie Maynard

Posted in News | 19 Comments

We should be ashamed of our failure to oppose the Smoking Ban

By Zagham Farhan | Thu 18th April 2024 - 10:15 am

The recent Tobacco and Vapes Bill, that passed its first reading in the Commons with an overwhelming majority, is decidedly anti-liberal and anti-freedom; and I’m extremely upset that the party leadership decided not to take a stand on this. When I first joined the Liberal Democrats, one of the primary reasons was that I believed us to be the last remaining party in this country to be fundamentally pro-Freedom, and to hold that as a core and imperative value. It seems that this is slipping through our fingertips.

The bill aims to do a number of things – my particular contention is with the idea of banning smoking for life for those who are turning 15 this year – thus making them a ‘smoke-free’ generation. It’s action on vapes is a separate matter, that I won’t address here. There are so many issues with this action, for anyone who cares about individual liberty.

Firstly, to smoke is an individual choice. Over recent decades, the wealth of scientific evidence has concretely proven the overwhelmingly devastating health impacts of tobacco – and I would argue almost no one legitimately disagrees with the idea that those who smoke know that its harmful. However, steps have been taken – such as the limiting of advertising and the proliferation of health advice – that have resulted in smoking rates also dropping significantly. In essence, people who smoke know what they’re doing. Restrictions on smoking in indoor places have also had an impact on second-hand smoking, again contributing to the idea that those who smoke are only harming themselves.

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged smoking and vaping | 51 Comments

How our Lib Dem MPs voted on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill (2nd reading)

By Paul Walter | Tue 16th April 2024 - 8:00 pm

After a long and thorough debate, the Second Reading of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill has just been overwhelmingly passed by the House of Commons – the voting was 383 for and 67 against.

This is the Bill that will make it illegal for people born in or after 2009 to buy tobacco products in the UK.

Posted in Parliament | 41 Comments

Daisy Cooper’s speech in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill debate

By News Meerkat | Tue 16th April 2024 - 6:49 pm

Here is the full speech from Daisy Cooper this afternoon, in the debate on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill in the House of Commons. Daisy is Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Health and Social Care and our Deputy Leader:

First, I want to put on record my thanks to the public health Minister the right hon. Member for South Northamptonshire (Dame Andrea Leadsom) and the chief medical officer Sir Chris Whitty, who spent time answering my questions and those of some of my colleagues. It was a very collegiate exercise and I am grateful to the right hon. Lady. It would be good to see more of that.

Posted in Parliament | 2 Comments