English Smoking Ban

[Geoff Winnington-Ball (RIP)]

Now you guys are for it... same as us.

Bloody do-gooders should mind their own damn business...

December 1, 2006

English smoking ban to take effect July 1, government says

By DAVID STRINGER

LONDON (AP) - A ban on smoking in movie theatres, shopping malls, pubs and other public places in England will take effect July 1, the government said Friday.

Prime Minister Tony Blair has said the ban is aimed at aiding Britain's smokers to quit and part of a wider drive to improve public health. Government statistics compiled in 2004 found around one in four adult Britons smokes regularly. The measure extends England's no-smoking law to public places such as cinemas, offices, factories.

A similar ban will take effect in Wales on April 2.

Pub landlords and pro-smoker groups have all expressed concerns about the law - fearing a negative impact on business and the ebbing of civil liberties.

"Thousands of people's lives will be saved and the health of thousands more protected" by the ban, said Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt.

"Smokefree legislation will protect everyone from the harm of secondhand smoke...and will provide a more supportive environment for smokers who wish to give up."

In March, Scotland became the first area of Britain to ban smoking in public places, with businesses warned failure to prevent smoking on their premises would lead to fines. Individuals can also be fined.

Some workplaces, including adult care homes, hospices, offshore installations and submarines, are exempt from the ban. Smoking is also allowed in police detention or interview rooms and in designated hotel bedrooms but cinemas, offices, factories and shopping malls are all covered by the law.

Similar rules will apply in England and Wales.