The APPG for Smoking & Health today called on the government to increase the age at which you can buy cigarettes from 18 to 21. The group of nannies believes this will end the “tobacco epidemic” by the end of the decade. Just one hiccup – 60% of MPs on the APPG believe the voting age should be lowered to 16…

Guido has compiled the list of the 9 MPs who believe that 16 year-olds are mature enough to decide the fate of this country, yet won’t be ready for another 5 years until they are 21 years-old to decide for themselves whether or not to smoke:

• Labour’s Alex Cunningham backs votes at 16
• Green MP Caroline Lucas supports votes at 16
• Lib Dem MP Christine Jardine argued that 16-year-olds should decide Scotland’s fate in the 2014 referendum.
• Labour’s Ian Mearns argued that 16-year-olds should vote on Britain’s EU membership.
• Labour MP Nick Smith thinks 16-year-olds should have a say in our leaders.
• SNP MP Owen Thompson believes 16-year-olds should decide this country’s leaders
• Shadow SNP Spokesperson Philippa Whitford wants to reduce the voting age.
• Racheal Maskell fought to lower the voting age in a passionate speech.
• Finally Labour’s Virendra Sharma voted to allow 16-year-olds a say in the EU referendum.

As Guido previously reported, lifestyle restrictions on eating, drinking, and smoking have steadily increased across Europe in the past 4 years. Maybe just let adults decide for themselves… 

Readers will no doubt be aware of incredible scenes in the Commons last night, as David Davis used parliamentary privilege to unveil not-seen-before text messages that seem to undermine three key Sturgeon claims:

1. Texts from senior SNP officials, Davis claims, show a “concerted effort by senior members of the SNP to encourage complaints.”, pointing to Salmond’s claim of a conspiracy in the Holyrood government to discredit him.
2. Material that suggests Sturgeon’s chief of staff Liz Lloyd interfered in the complaints process against Salmond.
3. This interference by Lloyd dating back to 6th February 2018 – almost two months before she and Sturgeon told Parliament they first knew about the complaints against Salmond.

While Davis acknowledged “no single sequence of texts” would prove Salmond’s case, he called for them to now be properly investigated. Sturgeon, naturally, accused the messages of being cherry-picked…

What those who didn’t tune in to the full debate last night may have missed, however, were incredible scenes of the SNP’s new Chief Whip trying to shut David Davis down:

“there are court orders in place around the identities of individuals involved in that case. I do appreciate the points that he is making, but I would appreciate your guidance on how we can ensure that these court orders can in fact be adhered to in this place.”

Thankfully the SNP’s cover-up attempts were less successful in the Commons than in their one-party state north of the border…