Doctors issued almost 2,000 prescriptions to under-18s last year, some to children as young as 11 — which means they could be in Year Six. The patches can cost about £25, meaning thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ cash is being spent treating children who are too young to buy tobacco. In total, GPs handed 1,994 prescriptions for nicotine patches or gum to youngsters aged 17 or under in 2019, according to the NHS Business Services Authority.