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The UK made history this week when its Parliament passed a law banning anyone born after December 31, 2008 from ever buying tobacco. Once formally approved by King Charles III, it will mean that an entire generation grows up permanently locked out of legally purchasing cigarettes, with the long-term aim of eventually phasing out tobacco use altogether. But could Spain ever do something similar?

 

Anti-smoking experts here say the ambition is right, but that Spain has some serious catching up to do before a measure like that becomes realistic.

 

"For years Spain was at the forefront of smoking control policies, we were pioneers, but now we find ourselves lagging behind," said Noa Rey, president of the National Committee for Smoking Prevention, adding that Spain urgently needs to tackle steps it has so far failed to take, including plain packaging, expanding smoke-free spaces like bar terraces and raising the price of tobacco significantly.

 

On that last point, she was particularly scathing, describing Spain as "the tobacco shop of Europe" and calling it "a disgrace" because of the low price of cigarettes. She also pointed out that 56,000 people die every year in Spain from tobacco-related causes, warning that "every day that passes without taking these measures costs us lives."

 

Raising tobacco prices is, according to specialists, one of the most effective tools available. Raúl de Simón, national coordinator for smoking at the Spanish Society of Primary Care Physicians, pointed to World Health Organisation data suggesting that a 10% price increase leads to a 4% drop in consumption among adults and up to 8% among young people.

 

He also noted that the UK's new law targets sellers rather than buyers and is designed to create a gradual generational shift, with the idea being that new generations simply never develop the habit in the first place.

 

Spain's Ministry of Health hasn't closed the door on a similar approach, but has been candid about the timing. Pedro Gullón, Director General of Public Health, acknowledged the measure has "enormous potential" while also noting that countries adopting lifetime bans tend to be those that have already driven smoking rates down through years of strong policy.

 

"We have a higher prevalence and a significant legislative lag," he said, adding that Spain is currently trying to modernise its tobacco policies but isn't yet at the point where a generational ban would be appropriate.

 

There are also legal questions to consider. Sara Bandrés, Professor of Legal Medicine at the Complutense University of Madrid, believes the UK model would be difficult to apply directly in Spain.

 

She identifies three potential conflicts: a constitutional challenge around equality before the law, since the rule would apply only to people born from 2009 onwards; tension with Spain's growing legal emphasis on individual freedom and autonomy in personal health decisions; and a fundamental clash between individual rights and public health interests.

 

In the UK, she suggests, there's already a cultural and legal acceptance that the wellbeing of future generations can take precedence over individual choice. In Spain, that balance is far less settled.

 

For now, the draft amendment to Spain's Anti-Smoking Law, which was initially approved by the Council of Ministers last September, includes measures to extend smoke-free zones and bring e-cigarettes in line with tobacco regulations. Plain packaging, long pushed for by health groups, didn't make it into the current draft.