(1) The Secretary of State may, if satisfied that doing so is in the interests of preventing harm to the health of children under the age of 18 or of promoting the health of children under the age of 18, make regulations specifying retail tobacco packaging requirements.The relevant legislation, if this amendment is passed and the bill becomes law, will enable the Secretary of State to write up the regulations just like that. Another amendment to the Bill is to make it an offence to 'fail to prevent smoking in a private vehicle when children are present'.
It seems that there is something more than a little underhand to prepare for the legislation to be brought in without further parliamentary debate, as part of a bill that will be full of glowing language about how life is being made much better for children.
This is clearly the solution that junior health minister Anna Soubry was working to enable but I didn't expect to see it in writing quite so soon as this!
1 comment:
It looks like the fascist psychopaths in the Lords are trying it on again. They've done this before. Even if the amendments got through the Grand Committee, it is unlikely to get far in the commons.
By the way, did you notice the phrase "children up to the age of 18" Isn't there a law about exploiting child labour? Is it right that children of the age of 17 should be exploited by ruthless employers?
Oh ..... And there is no law which forbids 'children' to smoke.
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