Smoking kills? Yaay, that’s so cool, say teens (speaker's corner)

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/child_health/article7119928.ece

Summary:

Lisa is a 14 year old girl that smokes around 6 cigarettes a day. She smokes at home but also with her friends at school during lunch break. The teachers really do not care about this and she says that if they want to they can easily catch her and her friends. The anti smoking crusade that is going on in Britain does not seem to work. People cannot smoke in public places and the age that a person can buy cigarettes went from 16 to 18. Yet despite these steps and the millions spent on awareness that smoking kills the number of young people smoking has at best flattened out and at worst, in some areas, actually worsened.

Debate statement: The new laws and millions spend on smoking are a big wasted of time.

My opinion:

I do not think that the laws and the money are a waste of time. Although in some places it did not work I do think that the government has a obligation to protect their youth. All the kids that smoke these days know that it is bad for them. After the information the children get about smoking they can make their own choice if they are going to smoke or not. This way at least they will be informed before they make this decision.