From 6am on Sunday July 1st the whole of Great Britain is now officially smokefree. Following on from Scotland (March 06), Wales (April 07) and Northern Ireland (April 07) the final piece of Great Britain’s smokefree jigsaw was placed on Sunday.

The House of Commons originally voted to amend the Health Bill to ensure that smokefree legislation covered all licensed premises and membership clubs on Valentine’s Day 2006 and this was finally passed by Parliament in June 2006.

The Law stipulates amongst other things that:

• Nearly all 'enclosed' and 'substantially enclosed' public places and workplaces shall be smokefree.
• Smoking will not be permitted on public transport and work vehicles used by more than one person.
• No-smoking signs must be displayed in all smokefree premises and vehicles.

The ban will cover offices, factories, shops, pubs, restaurants, bars, hair salons, barbers and public transport and many people have reported confusion over what a ‘enclosed’ or ‘substantially enclosed’ area involves:

“Premises are considered 'enclosed' if they have a ceiling or roof and (except for doors, windows or passageways) are wholly enclosed either on a permanent or temporary basis.

Premises are considered 'substantially enclosed' if they have a ceiling or roof, but have an opening in the walls, which is less than half the total area of the walls. The area of the opening does not include doors, windows or any other fittings that can be opened or shut.”
www.smokefreeengland.co.uk

Publicans have voiced concern on how this will affect their trade post ban and many smokers have threatened to revolt, fearing their civil liberties have been infringed.
Whatever, your view, the smoking ban is here, and it’s here to stay so it’s time to snuff out those cigarettes and pass around the snuffbox.