17 October 2005
SMOKING BAN IN ALL PUBLIC PLACES AND WORKPLACES
Health Minister Shaun Woodward today announced his decision to introduce legislation to control smoking in all workplaces and enclosed public spaces.
The decision means that smoking will no longer be permitted right across the hospitality sector, including bars and restaurants.
Earlier this year, the Minister announced that he would at least go as far as partial controls. Given the overwhelming health arguments, the support of the public and his desire to protect workers from the killer effects of passive smoking, the Minister has now opted to go for total controls.
Mr Woodward said: "This is an historic decision for Northern Ireland. This is not about banning smoking. People have that freedom of choice. What this decision is about is where people smoke. I have looked extensively at all the arguments for and against smoking controls. I visited New York and the Republic of Ireland to find out if their smoking controls had worked. They did work. In fact, there was overwhelming support from the public and workers in both countries which was why the introduction of smoking controls was so successful.
"My specific focus has been on the health of those who do not smoke. To protect them from the hazards and dangers of second-hand smoke and passive smoking.
"Yes, people have a right to smoke. But no-one has a right to subject the public, colleagues and workmates to the dangers.
In emphasising protection of workers, the Minister said: "The rights of workers are very much to the fore of my decision. I engaged with Trade Unions on this issue and 10 out of 11 supported the decision to move to total control on smoking.
"From my visit to New York, I learnt the staggering fact that a non-smoker on an eight-hour shift in a bar could inhale the equivalent of 10 cigarettes a day!
"People arguing against total control point to ventilation being a solution. Ventilation doesn't work.
"So a partial ban would have meant protecting workers in some workplaces but not in bars and pubs. Where's the social justice in that?
"Smoking is also a major cause of health inequality in Northern Ireland. It is the principle cause of the gap in life expectancy between rich and poor. And since many of those working in the hospitality industry tend to be poorly paid, it means we continue to expose second-hand smoke to the poorest people. Is that fair?
"I have no doubt this legislation will help save lives. Thousands of unnecessary deaths and smoking related illnesses. It will give people the incentive they need to give up smoking. This has already happened in the Republic, where the numbers of smokers has fallen from one-in-three to less than one-in-four.
"As Michael Martin, the then Health Minister in the Republic, said when he introduced his smoking legislation in 2004: "In every decade, we are presented with one major choice, where, if we call it right, we change the future for the better."
"Let's call it right today. Let's change the future for the better."
NOTES TO EDITORS:
1. Health Minister, Shaun Woodward, made his announcement at the Waterfront Hall, Belfast today. The decision will involve the introduction of legislation to control smoking in all workplaces and enclosed public spaces, including bars and restaurants.
2. The legislation will come into effect in April 2007.
3. A decision on whether to introduce smoking controls should also be introduced into prisons and psychiatric institutions.
4. Statistics from the Republic of Ireland's Office of Tobacco Control's 2004 Annual Report revealed that smoking prevalence in Ireland fell to less than one-in-four from almost one-in-three in 1998.
5. The Minister's speech is available on the Department's website on www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/publications/2005/smoking-speech-17oct05.pdf
Media queries to Philip Maguire, DHSSPS Press Office, on 028 9052 0636 or mobile 07788 108657
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