New Zealand has announced it will outlaw smoking for the next generation, so that those who are aged 14 and under today will never be legally able to buy tobacco. New legislation means the legal smoking age will increase every year, to create a smoke-free generation of New Zealanders, associate health minister Dr Ayesha Verrall said on Thursday.

新西兰宣布，将禁止下一代人吸烟，因此14岁以下人群将终身无法合法购买烟草。新西兰卫生部副部长阿伊莎•韦拉尔博士12月9日表示，新法案意味着合法吸烟年龄将逐年提高，以实现新西兰的无烟一代。

"This is a historic day for the health of our people," she said. "We want to make sure young people never start smoking, so we will make it an offense to sell or supply smoked tobacco products to new cohorts of youth. People aged 14 when the law comes into effect will never be able to legally purchase tobacco," Verrall said.
韦拉尔说："这对新西兰人民的健康来说是具有历史意义的一天。我们希望确保年轻人永远不会吸烟，因此我们将把向新生代年轻人出售或提供烟草制品定为犯罪行为。法律生效后，14岁以下人群将终身无法合法购买烟草。"