It should be up to the restaurateur to decide how he wishes to accommodate his customers. Ultimately customers will vote with their feet. The association has long argued that the damage caused by passive smoking is acknowledged by all but the tobacco industry. A firm regulatory framework is needed. The government should be prepared to be unpopular on this issue, he said.
Leadership is required, just as it was on seatbelts and drink driving.
Britains 46 million non-smokers, plus the eight million who are struggling to quit, would thank the government for being more courageous on this issue. The Institute of Health Service Managers also criticised the measures for not going far enough. There needs to be a categorical set of public places where smoking is totally banned. Philip Whidden, a spokesperson for the ANSR, said the government's decision not to take stronger action on passive smoking was based on government associations with industry. But since only one per cent of active smokers who try to quit smoking each year actually succeed, the government can pretend to be doing something about smoking when in fact it will be doing next to nothing.