Put that in your pipe and (don’t) smoke it (Image: CSA Images/Vetta/Getty)

No butts. The UK government voted decisively on Monday to ban smoking in cars when children are present.

Health specialists, led by Nicholas Hopkinson, a senior lecturer in respiratory medicine at Imperial College London, have been lobbying MPs for the ban for several years.

Hopkinson says he is delighted by this week’s decision. “This is an important step forward in protecting children from the harmful effects of tobacco smoke. The government must now move to implement this as quickly as possible,” he says.


About 11,000 people die from passive smoking in the UK each year, according to Cancer Research UK. Anyone exposed to second-hand smoke at home or work has a significantly increased risk of heart disease and lung cancer.

Increased risk

Children are particularly vulnerable as their lungs and immune systems are still developing. Those whose parents smoke are more likely to develop bronchitis and pneumonia, and are at increased risk of cot death, asthma, ear infections and meningitis.

Canada introduced a ban on smoking in cars carrying children in 2008. Research published last year by Hai Nguyen at the University of Toronto showed that the legislation had cut children’s exposure to second-hand smoke by 33 per cent.

Smoking is also on the agenda in the US. Last week, one of the country’s biggest drug stores, CVS Caremark, announced that from 1 October 2014, its 7600 stores will no longer sell tobacco products. The move may cost the company $2 billion in annual revenue. CVS plans to compensate for this loss by expanding into healthcare services.