Taking Liberties

Prior to and after the introduction of the smoking ban in Ireland, I made several trips to Dublin. I also embarked on what can best be described as an extended pub crawl from Waterford to Galway and beyond. One of the things that struck me was how, post-ban, previously tolerant non-smokers developed an extraordinary sensitivity to even a whiff of smoke.

The same, I believe, is true in the UK. This is bad news because it suggests that most non-smokers (the majority) are unlikely to welcome even a small amendment to the smoking ban. On the other hand, the following email offers hope that some can see how foolhardy (and counter-productive) the current legislation is:

I am a non smoker, but I have looked up your website for a strange reason. I feel that the recent legislation may bring two sides of the smoking debate together to a certain degree.

As a non smoker, I have been very irritated by the emergence of large numbers of smokers from areas where they previously smoked, to the front of shops, cinemas, cafes etc as a result of the new anti-smoking legislation. This makes it an unpleasant experience for me to go to any of these places.

I am sure that the smokers themselves would rather not have to stand outside of these places, but would rather return to wherever they smoked before. I cannot understand the COMPLETE ban on indoor smoking which prevents the use of smokers rooms, so that both smokers and non smokers can enjoy their rights without interfering with each other.

In fact, looking through the legislation, it would appear that even if a factory went to the trouble of providing a shed, outside in a yard, for smokers, that shed would be an enclosed area on work premesis, and therefore it would be illegal to smoke inside it. This is clearly a poorly thought out piece of legislation.