SUPERMARKETS in York are preparing for the latest piece of anti-smoking legislation which will come into effect in less than two weeks.

From April 6, large stores will no-longer be able to display cigarettes, in what is an attempt by the Government to end the “recruitment of young people into smoking”.

The Department of Health (DoH) said when the new rules come in to force it will be an offence for large shops to display tobacco products to the public, except on occasions, for instance, when staff are serving customers or when they are carrying out stock control or cleaning.

Customers will still be able to buy cigarettes in the usual way, but the Government is ending tobacco displays to protect young people, who it believes are often the target of tobacco promotion.

Next month’s legislation comes ahead of a total ban, to include shops of all sizes, in 2015. The DoH also said ending open cigarette displays will help people trying to quit smoking and help to change attitudes and social norms around smoking.

Just last week, City of York Council joined forces with the region’s health authority, NHS North Yorkshire and York PCT, to back the change in the law.

Rachel Johns, associate director of Public Health for the PCT, said: “Removing tobacco displays is the latest in a series of changes which aim to prevent people starting to smoke and support those who are trying to give up.”

Coun Tracey Simpson-Laing, ex-smoker and City of York Council’s cabinet member for health, housing and adult social services, said she knew how hard it can be for those looking to quit the weed.

“For those who find it difficult on will power alone, then the NHS has many ways to help people quit,” she said “More than eight million people in England still smoke – it is our biggest preventable killer and causes more than 80,000 deaths each year. So, I welcome this new law and the benefits this will bring.”

She said she believes removing tobacco products and promotional material from supermarkets would take temptation away from shoppers.

“It’s like when people go down to the supermarket without a list,” she said. “We pick things up when we see them and this legislation will stop reminding people that they want to buy cigarettes.

“I think it’s about not having those constant reminders saying, ‘hello the cigarettes are here’. It might stop you buying a packet of 10 or 20.

“I can remember the huge cigarette billboards in the street and those images used to stay in your head.”

Supermarkets in York say they are already prepared for the new law.

An Asda spokesman said: “We trialled the tobacco screens in a number of stores last year and have now begun rolling out to all stores ahead of the April 6 deadline.”

Meanwhile, Eileen McGuiness, of supermarket chain Morrisons, said it would be complying with the ban “to the letter”.

“What this means for us is that we have had to redesign the tobacco booths in all stores in accordance with the new regulations and all staff in stores are being educated on the new reforms in this area,” she said.

The Government’s chief medical officer, Professor Dame Sally Davies, said: “We cannot ignore the fact that young people are recruited into smoking by tobacco promotion.

“Two thirds of smokers say they were already regular smokers before they turned 18. More than 300,000 children under 16 try smoking each year.

“Ending tobacco displays in shops will protect young people from unsolicited promotions, helping them resist the temptation to start smoking. It will also help and support adults who are trying to quit.”

For more information on giving up smoking, phone North Yorkshire Stop Smoking Service on 0845 8770025. For more information about the new law, go to dh.gov.uk/health/2012/03/one-month/