SMOKING IN PUBLIC PLACES BAN

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Smokers will face a £200 fine for lighting up in a banned zone. Anyone found breaking the new regulations faces a £50 fixed penalty, discounted to £30 if paid within 15 days but that penalty could rise to a £200 if smokers are taken to court for the offence. Most public places and workplaces will be covered by the legislation including offices, pubs, restaurants, membership clubs, public transport and work vehicles that are used by more than one person. Signs must be displayed to ensure customers do not smoke.

Managers of smoke-free premises who are prosecuted for failing to prevent someone smoking could be fined £2,500 if convicted. Patients being visited by health workers at home will be exempt. The theatre stage will also be exempt, after the rules were relaxed for 'artistic' expression. Unlike Scotland, where the ban extends to the stage, performers will be allowed to light up if it adds to their role, although the audience will not. The regulations state that care homes, hospices and prisons will be allowed to have smoking rooms under certain circumstances. (Source: Mail on Sunday, Feb/07)

Britain's 12 million smokers have a powerful new enemy, capable of curbing their vice more effectively than the health lobby has ever managed - step forward the local bureaucrat. City councils across Britain are now drawing up radical plans to outlaw smoking in public places, with some considering draconian blanket bans in all public houses and clubs. The moves follow the decision by US cities such as New York to outlaw smoking in public places. Now a survey of Britain's 30 biggest city councils reveals that, anticipating government plans to give local authorities powers to impose smoking bans in public areas, nearly all are to restrict smoking in the coming months. Around a third plan to hold public debates on outlawing smoking in clubs, pubs and restaurants, with some suggesting a blanket ban within five years.

Anti-smoking groups say this would have a huge effect in reducing smoking. "The single best way to encourage more people to give up smoking will be restrictions on smoking in workplaces, including pubs and restaurants," said Deborah Arnott, director of ASH. Roger Coey, head of environmental health at Cambridge City Council, said, "We are looking at a five-year programme to make Cambridge smoke-free. We would like to do it with persuasion and have got quite far this way, but it would be useful to have the legislative power. We know that in some areas persuasion won't work, and so we would like to have the legal framework to push this through."

Andy Hull, chief environmental health officer at Liverpool City Council, one of the most active in drawing up anti-smoking measures, confirmed the council was looking at a ban on smoking in pubs and clubs across Merseyside. "Because of this city's relationship with sport, I would like to think we would be a very early adopter of such legislation, if not the first. There is a strong body of evidence that public opinion supports a ban." Liverpool councillors have already visited New York City to gauge how the no-smoking ban had been received there. Representatives from Sheffield city council had also visited.

Ian Sugden, passive smoking project officer in Coventry, said, "In Coventry the push is towards a ban. There is a Health and Safety Act, and if employees say they can't work in the environment eventually something has to be done about it." A spokesman for Exeter city council said it was committed to making the city a smoke-free environment and would start by targeting 800 businesses. "We are looking to visit these businesses and establish whether they have a smoking policy in place. We will offer help and advice on minimising exposure for employees working in smoky environments like the hospitality business, or introducing no smoking policies."

Birmingham and Manchester plan to hold public consultations on smoking bans in the near future. Derby has already launched a consultation exercise. Oxford city councillors discussed the possibility of a ban and Northampton is waiting on the results of a consultation exercise. Leeds and Bristol said they would consider a public debate if the Government's plans are made concrete. The London Health Commission, which advises Mayor Ken Livingstone, has already polled Londoners for their views. Nearly two out of three who responded said that they favoured a complete ban in restaurants.

Several councils suggested granting them powers to impose smoking bans was the Government's way of washing its hands of the whole issue. One former senior environmental health worker said, "Local authorities don't have the framework nor the power. It is ridiculous to think that, say, Wandsworth borough can take on the breweries or the tobacco industry, they don't know how they work." A spokeswoman for Cardiff city council said, "There is a public health issue that needs addressing, but we do not currently have the resources to coerce businesses into banning smoking."

Yet councils are acutely worried that doing nothing would open them up to lawsuits under the Health and Safety Act. The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, which represents Britain's 6,000-plus environmental health officers in the public sector, said that the time for talking on the issue is 'over' and is calling for elimination of smoking in the workplace, including in pubs, clubs and restaurants. (Scource: The Observer)

Publicans are so concerned about losing customers that they are installing 40in rain-resistant TV sets in beer gardens so sports fans can light up and watch the match. More than 200 have already been sold to the licensing trade since the Government announced a ban on smoking in public places. Encased in an aluminium frame and protected by galvanised, rust-proof paint, they are designed to withstand temperatures of up to 40°C (104°F).

The flatscreen TVs boast a 176-degree viewing angle, enabling a large crowd to watch the game without having to crane their necks. They also have anti-glare glass to combat the effects of the sun. They can be left outside all year and are fitted with a special security bracket to prevent theft. A Sanyo spokesman said the high-resolution sets had been designed specifically to help pubs and restaurants cope with the ban. (Source: Daily Mail, Mar/07)

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