Energy drinks, smoking, voting: How teenagers will be impacted by Starmer's plans

Many teenagers reading about Sir Keir Starmer's King's Speech are likely to have been disappointed, for a range of reasons.

They won't be forced to join the army or volunteer, as they would have been if the Conservatives won the election, and many popular university degrees will not be scrapped.

But a number of Labour's plans for the year ahead - set out by King Charles on Wednesday - will restrict the freedom of young people.

And a planned extension of their freedom - allowing 16 year olds to vote - is currently on hold.

Labour has insisted to ITV News that King's Speech policies are "by no means the limits to our ambitions".

A spokesperson said: “We are committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity to improve the lives of young people – from ensuring they have the teachers they need to inspire them, the skills they need to get on, and a chance of becoming a homeowner, to growing the economy so that everyone, no matter their background, can have the dignity of a decent, secure job to excel in life and work.“The King’s Speech is by no means the limits to our ambitions, but by prioritising laws to support growth as a first step, we can start to deliver the long-term change we need for a brighter future.”

So, let's take a look at was or was not in the King's Speech for teenagers.

Vapes and smoking ban

One victim of Rishi Sunak's early general election - other than the dozens of Tories who lost their seats - was his Tobacco and Vapes Bill.

The policy, which many said would be his only legacy, had to be scrapped when Parliament closed for the election campaign.

People rejoiced on social media when they learned vaping and smoking would no longer be restricted, despite the obvious health benefits the policy would bring.

But Prime Minister Starmer has revived his predecessor's plan to gradually phase out smoking by increasing the smoking age every year until no one is old enough.

It means nobody who turned or will turn 15 this year will ever be allowed to legally buy tobacco products.

Along with that, the PM also plans to cut vaping by restricting the number of flavours available and by banning companies from tailoring their products towards children.

Critics of these policies say they impact on people's freedom and open the door for prohibition of other products like alcohol and fast food.

Director of the free market think tank, the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), Tom Clougherty, said: "The smoking ban takes away freedom from future adults while risking the creation of a mass criminal black market."

But smoking is the single biggest cause of cancer in the world and is linked to at least 16 types of the disease, including lung, bladder and pancreatic cancer.

Labour says this policy will save tens of thousands of lives in the UK and boost the economy, because people working for longer will contribute more in taxes and the NHS will be under less pressure.

England’s Chief Medical Officer, Professor Sir Chris Whitty, said: “A smoke-free country would prevent disease, disability and premature deaths long into the future.

“Smoking causes harm across the life course from stillbirth, asthma in children, cancer, strokes, heart attacks and dementia."

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Energy drinks ban

Sir Keir was accused of "nanny-state" interference when he announced during the election campaign his plan to ban under 16s from buying energy drinks - but it appears he is following through.

In the King's Speech on Wednesday, Charles said his ministers will "restrict advertising of junk food to children along with the sale of high caffeine energy drinks to children".

Any drink containing more than 150mg of caffeine per litre would be restricted and supermarkets will require ID from young-looking customers before sale.

That means under 16s will be banned from buying the likes of Red Bull and Monster Energy, but they will still be allowed to purchase drinks including Coke and Lucozade.

During the election campaign, Sir Keir took aim at Monster in particular.

“Just to give you a sense of that, the caffeine in that is the equivalent of several espressos, which is why it’s having such an effect on children’s behaviour. Talk to anyone who’s in a school and they’ll tell you what the problem is.

“But also it’s got a very detrimental effect on their teeth.”

Sir Keir said he was “genuinely shocked and angered to learn that more children go into hospital to have their teeth taken out between the ages of six to 10 than any other operation”.

He also said: “I’m not prepared to simply stand by and let that happen, which is why we’ve championed supervised teeth cleaning. We’ve been watching that this morning.

“I don’t really care what people call it. If the price for a child of not taking action is losing your teeth between the ages of six to 10, that’s a price that’s too high.”

Voting at 16

Fifteen year olds will never be allowed to buy tobacco products, and they won't be able to vote any time soon either.

That's because Labour's promise to lower the voting age did not make it into the King's Speech, meaning the law is very unlikely to change in the next 12 months.

Sir Keir had pledged in the election campaign to lower the voting age, saying: "If you can work, if you can pay tax, if you can serve in your armed forces, then you ought to be able to vote."

But he explained after becoming prime minister that repairing the economy was his top priority, and laws would be passed with that in mind.

A King's Speech sets out the government agenda for the upcoming parliamentary session, which usually lasts around 12 months.

There are several sessions in each five-year parliament and it's expected that manifesto pledges would be enacted later in the cycle.

The charity UK Youth and the Green Party both expressed disappointment.

Jacob Diggle, UK Youth chief impact officer, said: "There was cross-party support for this and we hoped the change could have been made before the local government elections in 2025."

Green Party MP Sian Berry said she is "disappointed to see no specific bill in today’s list removing barriers to voting for young people".

“Our 16 and 17-year-olds and our young people need a real voice and need those measures in this Parliament. I hope that in the cause of hearing the bills put forward in today’s speech, the voices of young people are sought out, listened to, and many changes and additions made where they are needed most."

Labour has insisted that lowering the voting age remains a commitment that will be fulfilled before the next general election in five years.

People aged 16 and over can already vote in parliamentary and local elections in Scotland and Wales but Labour wants to extend this across the whole UK.

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