This seemed to slip under the radar of a few people on New Years day. The Government have announced the age to buy cigarettes is to rise to 18 in October 2007. This is on the back of the ban on smoking in public places in July.

Good I say, about time. Now retailers only need to ask for one kind of ID, one that says you are 18 or over, and there are plenty of established schemes for that. Anything that minimises underage sale of cigarettes is a good thing in my book. That's all really, just thought I'd help raise the profile of this story a little. Oh, and happy new year!