ICELANDIC lawmakers were today considering a proposal to ban the retail sale of cigarettes and make them a prescription-only product.

Under the proposal, smokers would need a valid medical certificate to buy tobacco products, which would only be available from pharmacies, The Guardian reported. Smoking "patients" would also need to submit to regular health checks.

The private members' bill was brought by Siv Fridleifsdottir, Iceland's former health minister, who told local media that the country needed to "wake up" to the dangers of smoking.

A spokeswoman from the ministry of welfare praised the proposal today but raised doubts about its chances of success. "Siv Frideleifsdottir is a very serious politician and this is a very serious proposal," Anna Baldursdottir said. "Whether it not it eventually becomes law, I do not know. I seriously doubt it."

Iceland already has one of the lowest smoking rates in the world, with just 15 percent of people aged 15 and older lighting up regularly.

The proposal will formally be debated by the Icelandic parliament when it returns from summer recess.

Originally published as Prescription-only cigarettes debated