My nan is irresponsible - isn't she?

There are no two ways about it, that is downright irresponsible. Poor kid.

Totally irresponsible. Do the parents know?

My nan would have been more likely to make me eat 400 cigs if she caught me smoking at that age!

That's just dreadful!!

Reminds me of the news story last week of the 3 year old being allowed to smoke ?

Probably not the best birthday present in the world.

I don't think it's anything like the 3 year old smoking though.

Utterly - and isn't it illegal to buy cigarettes for under 18s?

WKB3S

I'd go nuts if my mum or MIL bought cigarettes for my kids. What an utterly bizarre thing to do!

Totally irresponsible. He should be nicking them from his mum/dad/aunt/uncle like we had to ?

He's going to be popular at school. I would hope his mother would confiscate them and "have a word" with your Nan.

My auntie knows but my cousin lives with my nan most of the time (especially after my grandad died) i'm sure in my nans head she is giving him something he wants.

The more I think about it the more I wonder whether she is trying (in her own nice way) to buy him into staying with her as she is lonely (married for over 50 years and now on her own).

But even so ...

Irresponsible, AND illegal!

(I saw a young lad buying 2 packets of fags with a £10 whsmith voucher the other day......You're nan could have boough him one of them, and at least she'd be gioving the right "messgae" even if he did go out and get cigerettes instead of a book, cd etc)

Can I ask how old your nan is? And, is she a smoker herself?

He doesn't go to school. He did go to a secondary school but got kicked out, then went to a Educational Behaviour Unit which closed down 6 months later.

The LEA are in the process of finding him a school. He is suppost to be home tutored for part of the week.

My nan is 72 years old. She use to smoke and I think she has an occasional cigerette now and again. SHe certainly did when she was drunk at my aunties Hen do last year.

I don't think it is illegal to buy an under 16 cigerettes, or at least I'm sure it never used to be. I remember a lecture from a police officer when I was younger. It's illegal to see them to an under 16 but someone can buy them for them.

I do, however, thinks it's very irresponsible of your nan to encourage the habit.

I thought it was but either way, the age for purchasing cigarettes is now 18.

I didn't realise it had actually happend. I thought there was a hoohaw about people under 18 but over 16 that already smoked? People are always going to find ways to get them - never stopped me when I was younger! ?

The legal age for buying tobacco products is 18, it changed around Oct 2007 (I can check)

It is illegal for someone under the age of 18 to purchase, but it is NOT illegal for anyone over the age of 18 to buy tobacco products for somebody who is under 18.

I work in Retail, so I have training in age related priducts.

On the other hand, it is illegal for anyone over the age of 18 to buy for under 18's. There is an on the spot fine of £50 for anyone caught doing this. We have banned people over 18 in our store who we know have bought for alcohol for underage. We have also refused to sell alcohol to anyone we suspect is buy for under 18's too.

All our Co-Op stores practise a challenge 21/25 rule. If you look under 21 and are buying tobacco products, we have the right to ask for ID. If you look under 25 and are buying alcohol, we ask for ID. I think Sainsburys and Asda have the same policy.

Another thought, we have a 16 year old and a 17 year old working for us. They need to alert us when they are selling alcohol and have to be supervised when doing so, but they can serve tobacco without supervision.

Not sure if I'm being a bit daft but haven't you contradicted yourself?

I think she is referring to alcohol here but it took me a second to work it out too.

WSS. Did you mean it's okay for an adult to buy cigarettes for a minor, but not alcohol?

From the other things you've said,. sherry, it sounds like fags are the least of your cousin's problems.

Oh right - so you can buy cigarettes for an underage but not alcohol?

That seems a bit daft!

Cheers Hickory!

Sophie, of course you are right he has a lot of other problems. He won't have much of a life I don't think as he is taking no exams and not attended school for most of his life.

I'd be here allday if I went through all his problems as such, it was just this situation with the cigerettes I couldn't believe.

You may be heartened to know that you're not the only person with a renegade tobacco-pusher in the family.

Last year we attended OH's aunt's funeral - said aunt was OH's mum's sister. OH's mum didn't buy flowers, but instead bought 80 cigs each for each of her mourning nieces (all in their 30s) as she thought her money would be better spent this way, and that her sister would have preferred it like that. The ironic thing was that the aunt had died of lung cancer!!! Completely lost on OH's mum...

I realise it's no excuse, but could it just be a generation thing?

Back in the day, it was quite acceptable to buy someone 200 fags back from holiday or as a Christmas pressie. Never received them myself, but I know my H's auntie used to buy him 200 fags at Christmas when he was 18/19. And that's not that long ago, he's only 35 now ?

Although I realise the point in this example is that the boy is clearly 15, and therefore underage.

I appreciate this is making a load of assumptions, so forgive me, but generally speaking, the kind of person who is out of date enough to think that cigarettes are a good gift for a young boy probably aren't the kind of person who put much emphasis on the benefits of education or exams... Your gran sounds like she's still living in the 50s.

Zebra you are right, I doubt she does think it's important but she is also a little naive as she believes everything my cousin says, he once said he had a week off school because of staff training, as a teacher I told her this was not true as did my other cousin wife who is a teacher, but apparently we were both wrong and my cousin was right. She doesn't see anything wrong in anything he does.

Onthe otherhand I'd argue that he is actually my aunties responsibility and she should be making sure he completes his education but it seems she doesnt have the time for him. It's rather a sad situation really.

I'm sure (well hope) that my cousin will regret this in years to come, his job prospects are not that good.

Sadly yes, It does sound like I contradicted myself, but by law, yes, you can buy cigs for someone who is 16, 17 and not be prosecuted. But it is ilegal to do the same with booze. I argued this with management, but it is perfectly legal to buy cigs for a 'minor'.