Truss: Smoking Ban a Bid by ‘Technocratic Establishment’ to Limit Freedom

Former Prime Minister Liz Truss has said the government’s bill banning the sale of cigarettes to young people is a “virtue-signalling piece of legislation” arising from a desire by the “technocratic establishment” to “limit people’s freedom” as it passed its first reading in Parliament on Tuesday. MPs voted the first reading of the bill through by 383 to 67, with several MPs in support speaking about their own personal battles with tobacco addiction or watching loved ones suffer from smoking-related illnesses. The bill proposes on-the-spot fines of £100 for shops caught selling tobacco products to those underage, with the proceeds going to local authorities....