Public Smoking To Be Banned

Smoking will be banned in all enclosed public places and work spaces in England on July 1 2007, Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt announced.

The restrictions, which Hewitt described as a "triumph for public health" and a "huge step forward for health protection", follow the approval of legislation in July this year after a landmark vote in parliament.

From 6:00 am on July 1, 2007, smoking will be outlawed in offices, factories, shops, pubs, bars, restaurants, membership clubs, public transport and work vehicles used by more than one person.

It will also mean that indoor smoking rooms in workplaces will no longer be allowed, forcing smokers outside into the street.

Scotland introduced a ban on smoking in public places in March this year. Wales will follow suit on April 2 2007. Northern Ireland's devolved assembly will decided on a date if and when it resumes sitting.

Hewitt said: "This is a triumph for public health and a huge step forward for health protection. Thousands of people's lives will be saved and the health of thousands more protected.

"Smoke-free legislation will protect everyone from the harm of second-hand smoke when working, socialising and relaxing and will provide a more supportive environment for smokers who wish to give up."

The ban would help cut "unnecessary deaths" caused by passive smoking as well as lung cancer and heart disease mortality rates, she added.

"Where countries have gone smokefree the impact on the health of staff has been immediate and positive. And the experience of going smokefree in Ireland, Scotland, New York and elsewhere has been good for business," Hewitt said.

The announcement was broadly welcomed by anti-smoking lobby groups and the hospitality industry.

Regulations providing exact details of how the ban will operate are being finalised and will be placed before parliament in the near future.

But proposals put out for consultation in July indicated that England is likely to have much the same rules governing smoking in public as Scotland.

Virtually all structures with a roof -- even just a canvas awning -- would be subject to the ban unless half the sides were permanently open to the air.

No-smoking signs would also need to be prominently displayed at each public entrance to premises.

Breaching the rules would result in a fine, with local authorities taking responsibility for enforcing the ban in buildings such as offices, licensed premises, and also most public transport.


Your thoughts on this.......

i think its good there banning smoking

They banned it where I live and its great! I HATE the smell of smoke. Tis way i rarely have to smell it. Its much healthier for the public no more second hand smoke.

^I think because it's a health risk, it isn't considered a breach of civil rights. Like, it could make me happy to shoot someone, but because it would hurt / kill him/her (which would probably not make that person very happy), I couldn't. Second-hand smoke has been proven to be detrimental to health, so they could probably make whatever restrictions on smoking they want.

I think there should be more done to prevent young people from smoking than to stop people who are already smoking. No thirty year-old who's never smoked before decides "Hey, I think I'm going to pick up some cigarettes today and smoke with some friends on the street corner, that'll be real cool." But teenagers need some guidance on such things.

I'm a smoker. I have smoked since I was 12. That makes it nine years of destroying my body willingly and knowingly.

However, in all those years I have never been an inconsiderate smoker. I do not smoke in other people's vehicles, unless they are a close friend who is also a smoker. I do not smoke on sidewalks unless there is absolutely no other option (and even then I wait until I'm totally dying for a cigarette before I light up). I go out of my way to avoid smoking near children, because I'm well aware of the risks of second-hand smoke and since I became pregnant, smoking in my house has been banned so that when the baby arrives it will be into a smoke-free environment.
In Australia, legislation recently banned smoking in pubs and clubs, and within 4 metres of entrances to non-residential buildings. These are fair enough laws, I agree with them wholeheartedly, but now liquor licensees are bitching and whining about how their business has dropped off by a huge percentage because people can't smoke in their bars. My opinion on non-smoking clubs etc is that it's silly, because people who drink alcohol are generally either smokers or 'social' smokers (being that they can't have a drink in hand without a cigarette, but never smoke outside of their weekends). Granted, there are a few who go clubbing who don't smoke, but they know full well that clubs and bars will be smoky places, and if they choose to go there they choose to put up with it.
Our government is also talking about banning smoking in a vehicle with a child under 16 inside, which I agree with and would love to see put in place - parents can be so irresponsible, especially in colder climates where they're driving around with the windows up against the chill and their kids are in the backseat practically suffocating. In addition, they're trying to ban smoking within 10 metres of non-residential buildings, which would essentially restrict people to smoking either in the middle of the street, or only in their own homes, and sidewalks are only about five metres wide. This is ridiculous, and an attempt at forcing people to quit smoking - sorry, but we will either be forced to break such laws and smoke on pavements, or we'll find other ways of getting around it. You can't force people to give up smoking if they don't want to, they'll just find ways around it.

The government is torn between making money off the taxes on tobacco products, and being seen to be 'doing the right thing' by the Health Department and Cancer Councils. I personally feel that I should have a right to smoke out in the open, as long as I'm considerate about it (ie don't smoke near a bunch of schoolkids, and put your butts in a bin rather than grinding them out on the ground - both of which I do anyway). If people are offended by the smell or the thought of second-hand smoke, it's really not that hard to pipe up and ask me politely to stub it out (which I would, if anyone had the guts to mention it), or to move elsewhere (and if you're walking down the street, you're moving in the opposite direction anyway so dealing with the smell is a five-second ordeal, and quickly over and done with).
Non-smokers just need to get it into their heads that we smokers have just as many rights as they do, and although I agree it's a disgusting habit, it's my choice and if a law was passed that nobody could wear miniskirts in public because it might offend somebody, there'd be an uproar. I try to be as considerate as possible, but I'm not a mind-reader so I can't automatically tell if you're upset by me smoking near you. I will gladly move elsewhere if you would just open your mouth.
Just be thankful that you're living in this day and age, because 30 years ago people smoked in restaurants, in offices, on airplanes, in shopping centres, it was just the norm to smoke wherever and whenever you felt like it. So consier yourselves lucky to live in an age where you can go pretty much anywhere on the planet and breathe smoke-free air - your parents and grandparents weren't so lucky.

Well, in Norway, were I live, smoking has been banned for over a year now, I think. And that's good. I really support that.
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The world is so fucked up, did you know that ?

I speak really strongly about this cause my boyfriend's dad died because of smoking. Smoking should be banned because of them that is like top five of America's top killers.

Yes, I can agree with that one.
Because smoking isn't anything you need in life, it's not a life saver.
So why can't it be banned all over the world? It's just addicting, isn't it?
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The world is so fucked up, did you know that ?

Well, alcohol should be banned, too. Again, it's not something you need in life. There's many ways to have fun and having a good time without alcohol.
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The world is so fucked up, did you know that ?

Banning it wouldn't really make it go away, though, with smoking or alcohol. It would / will probably only make it worse *coughUSProhibitioncough* That's why I think preventative is better than trying to stop people who are already doing it.

I think it is excellent that smoking has been banned in public places. If someone has made the decision not to smoke, why should they have to breath in someone elses cigarette smoke? It's not fair. Everyone has the right to breath in clean air.

However, about the alcohol thing someone brought up. I don't think that's really the same issue. Smoking in public places doesn't just affect the smoker's health, it affects the health of those around them. Alcohol on the other hand is a personal decision. If one person is drinking, it doesn't affect the man stood next to him at the bar, who may not drink. If smoking didn't affect those around the smoker, I don't think they would be banning it.

I think it has set a date for over here (Northern Ireland) for like in September or something like that. But I think its great as that will mean no more smoke smells coming from the girls toilets or else they will be fined.

Hm, I kind of don't like the whole banning thing, but for public health, it's good. But, it doesn't mean people are going to stop doing it...because it's addictive, and I think a total ban makes things like this worse. But, maybe not.

This reminds me, in San Diego, Ca, I think, you can't stand and smoke. So you'd see all these smokers pacing back and forth while smoking. XD It's kind of a funny image.