GEG: Khairy's fight for public health continues

SHAH ALAM - Former Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin expressed frustration with the Federal Government's decision yesterday to exclude the Generational End Game (GEG) clause from the long-awaited Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023.

Khairy accused the tobacco and vape industry of lobbying the government to remove the GEG clause, which would have prohibited the sale of smoking products to anyone born after January 1, 2007.

"Today is a sad day.

"I crafted the GEG for public health. And the bill that I brought to parliament which contained the GEG and measures to regulate vape sale received support from the public health community," Khairy said in an Instagram post.

He said that the government's decision to drop the GEG clause was a "big win" for the tobacco and vape industry.

"Anyway, congratulations to Big Tobacco & the vape industry. You have won," Khairy said.

The Health Ministry has yes to respond to Khairy's criticism.

Background on the GEG clause

The GEG clause was a key part of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023, which was introduced in Parliament in October 2023.

The bill was intended to strengthen Malaysia's anti-smoking laws.

The GEG clause was designed to protect future generations from the harmful effects of smoking.

It would have prohibited the sale of smoking products to anyone born after January 1, 2007.

The government's decision to exclude the GEG clause from the bill has been met with criticism from public health advocates.

They argue that the clause is necessary to protect the health of future generations.

Khairy's response to criticism

Khairy has defended the GEG clause and accused the government of caving to pressure from the tobacco and vape industry.

"Don't even think for a minute that GEG was dropped because of some lame excuse of a legal argument proffered by the Attorney General.

"Lawyers laugh at that asinine statement. No, GEG was dropped because of the strong lobby from Big Tobacco. This is not over. One day, public health will win," Khairy said in an Instagram post

The future of the GEG clause

It is unclear whether the GEG clause will be included in the final version of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023.

The bill is currently being debated in Parliament.

Additional information

• The Generational End Game (GEG) is a policy aimed at reducing the prevalence of smoking by preventing future generations from taking up the habit.
• The GEG policy has been implemented in a number of countries, including New Zealand and Finland.
• The GEG policy has been shown to be effective in reducing smoking rates.