Scotland bans smoking in public

[graham enzk]

Wednesday 10 November 2004 04:38pm


Scotland bans smoking in public


Smoking in enclosed public places will be banned in Scotland under legislation to be launched before Christmas, the First Minister has confirmed.

Jack McConnell told the Scottish Parliament the legislation would have a target date of spring 2006 for full implementation.

Licensees or employers who fail to enforce the law in their premises will face fines of up to £2,500 - and licensees who persistently flout the law will face the ultimate sanction of having their their licence withdrawn.

Individuals who smoke in enclosed public areas will face fixed penalty notices with a maximum fine of up to £1,000 for persistent offenders.

Environmental health and local licensing standards officers will be responsible for enforcement. Private clubs will not be exempt from the ban.

The decision to go for a ban was taken by Scottish ministers at a Cabinet meeting this morning, but was not disclosed until Mr McConnell's statement to MSPs.

He told Parliament that poor diet, excessive drinking, lack of exercise and drug abuse all made Scotland one of the unhealthiest nations in Europe.

"Too many people smoke, and too many people die or fall ill from cancer, stroke and heart disease," he said. "The single largest cause of preventable premature death in Scotland is smoking."

He detailed the consultation process that the Executive launched on ways to curb the toll of 13,000 smoking-related deaths a year.

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) Scotland, which has waged a long campaign for a ban on smoking, led the chorus of delighted approval from health chiefs, unions and cancer charities in Scotland.

Maureen Moore, chief executive of ASH Scotland, said: "Tobacco has done so much damage to Scottish society, these new laws will help us to improve everyone's quality of life."

(c) Copyright Press Association Ltd 2004, All Rights Reserved.









woo-hoo!

[All_in_black]

Passive smoking does fuck all and this is totally wrong.

Anyway, the issue should be about whether or not non-smokers have a place to go, not if smokers should smoke or not.

[graham enzk]

Originally Posted by All_in_black

Passive smoking does fuck all

really? what makes you say that?

[spam_javelin]

This is just an example of a nanny state gone mad.

Im all for banning it in places where there are children around but not in bars. Fair enough it is a good idea as smoking is a terrible, terrible thing but surely this should be left up to personal choice. I think bars should be made to provide no smoking areas but an outright ban is wrong.

[All_in_black]

Originally Posted by smallbob

really? what makes you say that?

Okay, I could start smoking ten cigarettes a day when Im fifteen. Let's say it kills me when im sixty-five. That is fifty years on ten a day.

Now, when someone breathes in second-hand smoke, each breath is a fraction of one puff. Also, second-hand smoke is very much diluted.

This means that to die from passive smoking youd have to be around another smoker every day for hundreds of years.

[Becca Bomb]

Originally Posted by All_in_black

Okay, I could start smoking ten cigarettes a day when Im fifteen. Let's say it kills me when im sixty-five. That is fifty years on ten a day.

Now, when someone breathes in second-hand smoke, each breath is a fraction of one puff. Also, second-hand smoke is very much diluted.

This means that to die from passive smoking youd have to be around another smoker every day for hundreds of years.

Ever heard of Roy Castle? Didnt think so.

[: : Scott : :]

Originally Posted by punkiconess

Ever heard of Roy Castle? Didnt think so.

me neither

[Lindsay]

i think the main concern is people who work in bars whoare around smokers a lot.

it will be good for people who work in bars and clubs. it will be good for people who used to smoke, who get an occasional craving, it will be good for people trying to give up. while people say "oh, non-smokers should go elsewhere", why should we? i do go out, and i don't really think about smoking around me, but it will be nice to go out and not have smoke blown around me.

[Becca Bomb]

this will never happen in scotland. certainly not in pubs.

[spam_javelin]

passive smoking is an issue but in a bar it's to be expected that you will encounter a smoky atmosphere. if it bothers people then they should go somewhere else.

And anyone who gets a job in a bar then starts pissing and whining about passive smoking needs a slap.

[Lindsay]

if someone really doesn't want to passive smoke then i don't think they would go to a bar. i work in a gig venue and i know that the smoky atmosphere isn't great. but even though i am aware of it, other things outweigh my dislike of it. but if they are going to ban smoking in pubs + suchlike, i would rather happy.

[Ge'd]

I just hope that men & ladies that are addicted to drinking & smoking at pubs continue to drink at the pub, & cut down on smoking.

I hope they don't say; "If I can't have a fag with my beer/whisky/whatever then I'll just stay at home & get pissed there." Thus smoking in their house in front of wife/husband & kids.

At least there are no fucking kids in the fucking pub.

*Edit - this applies to social smokers, mostly.

[PrettyPumpkin]

Places like pubs should be required to put in extractor fans or something so that the smoke goes out of the pub rather than lingering about the place. Simple things like that to cut down the amount of smoke in the pub for example would surely improve things for staff who work there...

[Lindsay]

Originally Posted by Ged

I just hope that men & ladies that are addicted to drinking & smoking at pubs continue to drink at the pub, & cut down on smoking.

I hope they don't say; "If I can't have a fag with my beer/whisky/whatever then I'll just stay at home & get pissed there." Thus smoking in their house in front of wife/husband & kids.

At least there are no fucking kids in the fucking pub.

*Edit - this applies to social smokers, mostly.

only the losers will do that