Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4377250.stm


What does everyone think? I think it's good news, but then it's only for places serving food.

Took them long enough. Shame it's not a wider ban.

It is, yeah. But it's a step in the right direction.

(This post was to add a poll, which didn't add when I posted the topic!)

Although I agree with the ban I think this partial ban is unfair & just going to hurt business for those who serve food

I agree. The bad thing is that it's likely we will see less establishments offer food as a result.

I think the term 'serves food' is an absolutely stupid suggestion. First of all how do you define food? Is a pub offering a couple of sandwiches the same as a pub that offers a full on steak? What happens to a pub that sells food only a couple of hours a day?

I would of preferred a regime where those pubs that had seperate, well ventilated rooms could turn those rooms into designated smoking rooms, but here's me and my wacky ideas!

We're going to see it affect us in a pretty hard way. We serve food, but a large percentage of our customers are just drinkers who come in and smoke. We make most of our profits on the smaller percentage who just come in and drink, if you take away those who smoke we'll lose a lot of business.

People will come in just to eat and then go elsewhere to drink because you can't smoke.

quite timely..but it'll hit hard on the industry specially smokers are like half of the population in England....

or so i think

A stupid move. What has happened to this country? Ban this, ban that and politically correctness in overdrive causing massive racial tensions across the country.

I hate smoking and hate smoke around me but believe it should be up to restaurants and pubs to decide whether they want to allow smoking in their building or not. The government should stay out and stop interfering so much. The owners of bars, pubs and restaurants have a living to make and banning cigarettes will hurt their business.

Smoking should remain banned in the workplace, stores and public transport though.

Thats not going to happen is it, if individuals were to ban it they would simply lose business, if there were a blanket ban in public places the impact wouldn't be any where near as bad (smokers aren't just going to stop going out are they, they'd just have to learn to have a bit of self control with their habit).

I for one am sick and tired of inconsiderate smokers. Why should I have to come home smelling of smoke and generally feeling horrible when I go out because of people smoking, please don't use the "you could of gone somewhere else" line, you and I both know that that doesn't work and isn't always possible.

I am sick of inconsiderate smokers as well. Many of them don't give a crap about others inhaling their smoke. However, I still believe it is good to find a compromise and look for a solution that works for both side of the fence. Having a properly ventilated area where smokers can smoke away from non-smokers should be allowed.

Still, if you were a restaurant owner wouldn't you be pissed off with the government telling you what you can and can't do in your restaurant? I know I would be.

Believe me, I hate my clothes reeking of smoke as well. Makes you wonder what was the point in taking a shower, wearing clean clothes and putting on aftershave when it's all going to go to waste around smokers.

I am just worried about the effect it will have on those businesses because I know it's going to really hurt them. About a year ago I read a report about the ban in Ireland and it had caused a lot of pubs to actually close down. It was that bad. Personally I dislike pubs but I know they form a big part of communities and was saddened to read about it.

I would love to see a complete ban and I think it should be carried out.

A lot of pubs, clubs and bars now serve food because of the large amount of money it provides throughout the day and they won't stop serving food just so smokers can go in.

I think they shouldn't ban smoking.
So there

I wonder why...

No - we've been waiting for this for a few years now. We want to ban smoking, and we can't (by the way I'm referring to the 3 places I'm working at/have worked at, because we can't ban smoking without our competitors doing so. Our customer feedback indicates that a) they want smoking banned and hate smoking but b) they have friends who smoke so wouldn't come in if it was non smoking. However if it was non-smoking everywhere they wouldn't be bothered.

A blanket ban would be best for business, this half arsed ban is good for nothing.

But you are talking about a restaurant worker, not restaurant owner. If I was working in a restaurant I would want the ban as well. However if I was the owner I would want the right to decide, especially if it's going to affect my income.

They did that type of thing here in Delaware... I must say it is much better without having to smell the ciggerette smoke while people are eating...

I'm not talking about as a restaurant worker, I'm talking from someone who has a vested interest in the success of the business and the profits, as well as incorporating into my opinion I am also incorporating that of Mark's who owns the business.

By we want to ban smoking, we as a business want to ban smoking but we can't risk it because of the reasons I outlined in my previous post which I'm not going to go through again.

From the Downunder expierance (NSW here, it's state based legislation not a Federal matter) ...

- Smoking is now banned in offices, following a number of successful court cases re passive smoking.

- Smoking banned in eatiers, if you want a fag (can the US members stop giggling please) then have one outside. Good move imho.

- Pubs have to have designated non smoking areas. One of the more stoopid laws introduced by the current state government. That's why you are seeing tape on the floors in Pubs and clubs. On one side you can smoke, on the other you can't. Same room

The State Gov raises horrendous amounts of money from smoking and poker machines. Yet to see a smoke free poker machine room. But then again considering the mentality of some of the people playing those machines (14 schooners down the gullet, the week's wage in the machine), it could be viewed as natural selection

Well I believe in the freedom of choice in this case. You may want them banned but other owners may not and I believe they should have that choice. The choice to decide in their own business. It would be easy for me to say "ban them" since I hate cigarettes (not only hate but I am actually allergic to smoke) but I can look beyond my own needs.

It my state (not country mind you) there has been a smoking ban in public restaraurants and bars/pubs for a year and it seems to have worked out better than some restaurant and bar owners feared (it's a blanket ban for bars rather than the food-serving ones only ban that your govt. has proposed). Although, now it tends to create a huddle of people around the doorways. Still, better that than having it inside I guess.

Well actually polls have shown most smokers are in favour of an all-out ban. In fact a higher proportion of smokers are in favour than non-smokers. In Ireland they've put an all-out ban into place. When smokers want to light up they go outside, they still have the choice, they just have to enjoy Ireland's weather (read: cold and rainy) in order to exercise it. As far as I'm concerned it is better that the smokers get cold and wet than the non-smokers, who have not decided that they'd like to be in a smoke filled room have to inhale toxic gases. Remember, its only enclosed public places, there's nothing stopping you having a fag on the street.

Yeah I heard that too. Interesting question is why is there a substantial decline in trade where the ban is enforced? Why aren't people coming and buying in record numbers? Sales are dropping in many of the places where ban is in effect. Something isn't adding up somewhere.

Smoking in yiur own home is fine by me but smoking out in the public should be banned. It stinks. We shouldn't have to put up with it. And its bloody unhealthy for us too. If people want to smoke, smoke in your own home where nobody gets effected. The less people we see smoking, the better. Less children and other people would probably start smoking too. And people always throw there ciggarette on the ground which pisses me off too.

Non-smokers should be allowed to carry around little gas cansiters that randomly emits sticky smelly smoke.

We can huddle outside supermarkets and shopping centers and blast people as they walk by. When they complain, we can say that it's our right to emit noxious smoke and you can't do anything about it.

I'm an ex-smoker, so I get to be particularly pious.

I like California's approach: "Welcome to California, please extinquish all cigarettes".

good idea

Because it works like this:

Group goes out for a drink, can't smoke in pub 1, smoker in group goes outside while everybody has a drink - misses socialising. Can't smoke in pub 2, smoker in group goes outiside, same applies. Can't smoke in pub 3, smoker in group goes outside, same applies. Group getting annoyed that smoker is missing out on all the conversation, and despite the fact they don't want to stand in a smokey pub, it's preferable to smoker missing out on everything. Pub 4 ends up really busy until it's too full and then Pub's 1, 2 and 3 pick up business.

That's still going to happen under the new system, except people will go out for a meal and then move on to non food serving bars and pubs so their friends can smoke.

It's annoying because whenever we go out we end up starting in non smoking pubs (there's quite a few in Sheffield now) but we always end up somewhere where we can smoke, and I normally end up smoking too. Once it's all non-smoking it'll be fine!

To be honest though, the ban won't really affect my social life - it'll probably just cost me my job in a few years time.

You guys make me sick.

Think about this. How many deaths are there a year due to smoking?

How many deaths are there for people that drink and get drunk?

# Every year, around 114,000 smokers in the UK die as a result of their habit, that is, one in five of all deaths.

# Smoking kills around six times more people in the UK than road traffic accidents (3,439), other accidents (8,579), poisoning and overdose (3157), murder and manslaughter (513), suicide (4,066), and HIV infection (234) all put together (22,833 in total - 2002 figures).

# Smoking causes thirty per cent of all cancer deaths (including at least 84% of lung cancer deaths), 17% of all heart disease deaths and at least 80% of deaths from bronchitis and emphysema.

Drinking:

In the United Kingdom, expenditure on alcohol as a proportion of total household expenditure has fallen from 7.5% in 1980 to 5.7% in 2003.

The Strategy Unit estimated that in 2000, there were between 15,000 and 22,000 alcohol related deaths in England and Wales.

Sources: Department of Health (UK) www.dh.gov.uk ias www.ias.org.uk No Smoking Day www.nosmokingday.org.uk

Even though Samualt has just proved you wrong that doesn't matter. Someone drinking or taking drugs doesn't have an negative impact on the health of those around them, on the other hand someone smoking does.

Well you could argue that someone drinking or taking drugs does have a negative impact on society, a very negative impact, which smoking doesn't have.

And I will argue that 99% of alcohol consumption has zero impact on society. Most drinking is conservative, and the 'negative impacts' don't kick in until it becomes abused at a much higer level. Smoking, on the other hand, has a negative impact the second the cigarette is lit.