Smoking
Bans
V8/06.08
Belgium
Adopted
a two stage approach,
with stage one applying on 1 January 06 to all enclosed workplaces as
well as enclosed public areas. Stage two came into
effect on 1 January 07 and applies to restaurants as well
as places where meals are served. Not included
are cafés and bars that sell only snacks.
A snack is defined as food that requires no cooking, so
sandwiches, salads and the like are okay. On the other hand
restaurants may still permit smoking in separate rooms where no food
may be served, though very few have this facility. The ban
does not extend to vehicles, whether company or privately owned.
Hotels may still continue to offer smoking
bedrooms if they wish and a quick check indicates that the majority
have elected to do so. The common areas of hotels are smoke
free, although many have bars with smoking sections.
A list for Belgium is not planned, however visitors should
experience few difficulties in finding suitable accommodation and
their hotel receptionist should be able to point them to an
appropriate venue for their evening snack.
Italy
From January 2005, smoking has been forbidden in all enclosed
public places. Nevertheless it is possible to smoke in any
establishment that has provided a ventilated smoking room (sala
fumatori), in which food may be served, but which are subject
to strict conditions. They need to be separately ventilated,
with specified air replacement rates; their air pressure must be lower
than the pressure in the surrounding rooms and they must be equipped
with automatic sliding doors. There are no restrictions on
where these rooms may be located, hence some offices have
this facility. Expensive to install, hence fewer
than 5% of all public establishments have elected to
provide them. The ban does not include vehicles,
irrespective of ownership, though smoking is prohibited in all buses,
trains, taxis and hire cars.
A fine of up to 2,000 Euros may be levied on businesses that fail to
comply with this law and smokers may be fined up to 275 Euros.
Despite this, smoking is still commonplace and there is no
general social stigma against those who do.
The definition of what constitutes an outdoor area is fairly relaxed
in Italy and it is not unusual to see patio areas with
extensive screening or wind breaks. Hotels may continue to
provide
smoking bedrooms if they wish, however all common areas within the
building are strictly non smoking. Several hotels do however
offer smoking sections attached to their restaurants that conform
with the legislation.
The list for Italy includes a number of pubs and restaurants that
offer sala fumatori and can be accessed via the footer link.
England,
Scotland, Northern Ireland & Wales
Where is smoking banned?
All public access indoor areas (pubs, bars, restaurants, shopping
malls, airports etc., as well as all common areas in your hotel),
public toilets, buses, trains, hire cars, phone booths as well as bus
shelters that have three or more sides. Also included are
company owned vehicles, being "places of work". All must display a no
smoking sign, so you will see them everywhere, vehicles included.
Where can I smoke?
A private house, a private caravan, a private vehicle, a designated
smoking bedroom within a hotel, guest house, inn or hostel as well as
an approved smoking shelter. In England specialist tobacconists
may allow customers to sample cigars and pipe tobacco within
their premises, though few have elected to do so thus far.
You may smoke outdoors and you will find that, where possible,
most service providers will have a few tables and chairs outside
and ashtrays will be supplied.
The lists (accessible via the footer link) make no attempt to include
every sidewalk café that any visitor can easily see.
Rather it will list beer gardens, patio areas and the like that
are privately owned.
Beware that a small number of land owners have an outside no smoking
policy. They will display a sign, however
these are purely private initiatives and enforced by the land owner.
Why exclude hotel bedrooms?
They come under a broad category classed as "temporary homes".
The following may help:
www.opsi.gov.uk/legislation/scotland/ssi2006/20060090.htm
(the ban) was enacted in Scotland in 2006 and, aside from regional
semantics, Wales, Northern Ireland and England followed suit in 2007.
It details the room requirements, then goes on to state that
the term "hotel room" applies equally to boarding houses,
guest houses, inns and hostels that have two or more letting rooms.
It specifies that it is the owner or manager of the
establishment who has sole discretion to decide which bedrooms may be
designated for smoking.
www.walsall.gov.uk/index/environment/smokefree/smoking_permission.htm
(or _faq.htm) provides an easier read for visitors to England.
What do you mean by "smoking shelter"?
A shelter may be approved for smoking if the structure
has no roof, then it may have four sides or, if it has a roof
then the walls cannot be greater than 50% of the available
area. Beware, because they have three "walls" as well
as a "roof", you can be fined for smoking in a doorway.
What
are the penalties for smoking in the wrong place?
A £50 on the spot fine for you. The service
provider may also face an escalating fine that varies from about
£200 for the first offence and can rise to
£2,500 for frequent offenders. In extreme cases the
service
provider may have his/her licence revoked and be forced to close.
Any
other tips?
Aside from controls over where you can smoke, you'll need to be careful
about how you dispose of your fag end. Both ash from
a cigarette as well as the butt are litter and, if you're caught,
you'll be
subject to an on the spot fine of £50. Most town
centres have stub plates on top of the litter bins; use those and
dispose of your fag end in the bin. Alternatively bring
a pocket ashtray with you, or buy one at any decent tobacconist for a
couple of quid.
There have been a very few very isolated cases of verbal and physical
assaults against smokers. Always use your best
judgment, especially after dark, and never hide away in an isolated
corner. Lots of light and lots of people are your best
defence against this very rare problem.
If
I want to let you know of places in my country that cater for smokers,
how can I do that?
Simply e-mail full details to lg@stx6.com and your entry will
appear in the next revision.