A child born in 2010 will turn 21 in 2031. If the Tobacco-Free Generation (TFG) proposal becomes law, that young adult, and every Sri Lankan born after them, will never be able to buy a cigarette legally. It is a simple idea with a long horizon, and it deserves the Government's full backing. The proposal, prepared by the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol (NATA) with the support of medical bodies and civil society groups, remains a Cabinet paper. Cabinet should approve it without further delay.

The reasons are plain to see in our hospitals. Nearly 80 per cent of deaths in Sri Lanka are now caused by non-communicable diseases, and tobacco is among the leading causes of the cancers, heart disease and lung ailments behind them. The Health Ministry says about 22,000 people die every year because of tobacco and alcohol. Behind each number is a family that lost a breadwinner, a parent or a grandparent, often after years of painful and costly treatment.

There is also a question of fairness to the public purse. State hospitals treat patients largely free of charge, something the country rightly values. Yet every bed occupied by someone with a preventable smoking-related illness is paid for by taxpayers, most of whom have never smoked, and the money competes with medicines, dialysis and maternal care. Experts have warned of rising cigarette use even among schoolchildren, and of the strain this will place on public health spending. Stopping the habit before it takes root is far cheaper, and far kinder, than treating its consequences 30 years later.

Critics call such a policy heavy-handed. It is not. It leaves today's smokers alone and limits only future sales, so no adult loses a freedom they already hold. NATA Chairman Dr Ananda Rathnayaka has been frank that about one in ten Sri Lankans still smokes, that the programme 'cannot do this alone', and that tobacco will not disappear by some fixed year. It may take a couple of generations. Other countries have begun: the Maldives has applied a generational ban since November 2025, and the United Kingdom passed its own law this year. New Zealand repealed its version after a change of government, a reminder that political will decides whether such laws survive.

The strongest objection is that the policy will feed a black market. The concern is real, but it is a reason to do more, not less. Estimates of the illicit share of the market vary widely, so the country needs independent measurement rather than figures supplied by parties with a commercial stake. Whatever the true size, the remedies are known. Taxes should keep pace with inflation and rise in steady steps, not sudden jumps that widen the gap between legal and smuggled prices. A tracking system that follows legal product from factory to shop makes diversion easier to spot. Penalties must match the profits involved, and analysts have noted that the maximum fine for smuggling a container load was once a tiny fraction of its street value. Customs must keep a sharp eye on containers, ports and passengers.

Vaping is the other front. Selling e-cigarettes is prohibited, yet vapes remain easy to find, promoted openly on social media. Officials have already arrested people for selling them to schoolchildren. If a generation that never buys a cigarette is simply handed nicotine in a fruit-flavoured device, the purpose of the TFG will be lost. The proposed amendments to the NATA Act, which would close the legal gaps on use, must therefore move alongside it. Enforcement should target sellers and the online platforms that serve them, not the teenagers. A schoolchild found vaping needs a counsellor and a way to quit, not a criminal record. Singapore, which NATA has pointed to as a model, pairs firm action against suppliers with rehabilitation for young users. We can learn from that balance.

Sri Lanka has been here before. Amendments to the NATA Act, including a ban on single-cigarette sales and plain packaging, have waited nearly eight years, with health advocates blaming industry lobbying. The TFG must not join that queue. The Health Minister has welcomed the concept, the medical profession is behind it, and Dr Rathnayaka has asked the media to keep up the pressure. A healthier Sri Lanka will not arrive by accident. It has to be legislated, funded and enforced, and it begins with a Cabinet decision.