Pubs criticise UK plans to ban smoking in outdoor spaces

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Ministers are considering extending smoking restrictions in England to outdoor spaces including pub gardens, restaurant terraces and children's play areas.

The proposals are being considered as part of the tobacco and e-cigarette bill the new Labour government promised to introduce in last month's King's Speech.

The bill continues former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's flagship policy of making it illegal to sell cigarettes to children born after January 1, 2009, and would impose restrictions on the sale and marketing of e-cigarettes.

Public health experts have long called for stronger laws on tobacco, but industry groups and Conservative politicians warned on Thursday that any move to ban smoking in outdoor entertainment venues would hurt businesses and lead to job losses.

Sir Keir Starmer has stressed the need to strike the right balance when asked whether new restrictions aimed at reducing smoking would betray a post-election promise by politicians to be more light-hearted in their lives.

He said: It's important to get the balance right, but anyone watching this video, anyone who uses the NHS, will see that the NHS is on its knees.

We need to ease the burden, which is why I talked about moving to a preventive model for health before the election.

The current indoor smoking ban could be extended to areas including outdoor sports stadiums, small parks, sidewalks outside hospitals and universities, and outdoor areas of nightclubs, according to documents obtained by The Sun newspaper.

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, said banning smoking in outdoor areas would have serious financial consequences for the hospitality industry. She cited the mass closure of pubs after indoor smoking bans were introduced to illustrate the potential impact.

Nichols added that many venues have invested in outdoor space out of good faith since the COVID-19 pandemic but continue to face financial challenges.

The last Labour government made smoking illegal in enclosed public places and workplaces across England in 2007.

But Amber Taverns chief executive James Bear said he did not expect Labor's plans to have the same impact on pubs as the 2007 ban, as smoking rates have fallen since then and will continue to fall.

Michael Keel, chief executive of the Nighttime Industry Association, said reports of the plans had raised concerns across the industry, adding: “Are we on the verge of becoming a protectorate?”

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Meanwhile, Conservative leadership candidates Robert Jenrick and Priti Patel on Thursday opposed the idea of ​​a protective state to extend the smoking ban.

Health campaigners welcomed the proposals. Penelope Toppe, chair of the BMA's public health medicine committee, said it was important to understand that smoking and the harm it causes disproportionately affects less well-off people.

She added that the new law must apply across England, seek to mitigate the negative impact on the hotel industry, include adequate and sustained local public health funding and support smoking cessation services, which have been significantly reduced over the past decade.

Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health (Ash), said the charity would support consultations to include powers to extend smoke-free laws to outdoors.

She said the government seemed to be responding to public expectations, and that its role was to ensure that people did not have to inhale cigarette smoke in places such as children's play areas or outside seating areas in bars, restaurants and cafes.

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