Smoking ban gets support

The majority of people in London want to see smoking in public places banned, a major poll reveals.

More than three-quarters of those questioned said they would prefer enclosed public places in the capital to be made completely smoke-free.

A similar proportion also backed a law to make all workplaces smoke-free.
Full details of the poll, by the publicly funded London Health Commission, will be revealed on Monday. The effects of a ban on smoking in public and the workplace would be dramatic, with far-reaching implications for employers as well as pubs, clubs and restaurants.

The campaign to ban smoking in restaurants and pubs will be boosted by the survey of tens of thousands of Londoners who took part in the Big Smoke Debate.

Mayor Ken Livingstone is to consider the results of the internet survey. Although he is not able to introduce a smoking ban, he is committed to working with partners to cut smoking in public places. However, the Government could pass laws giving him the ability to introduce restrictions on London's two million smokers.

The poll comes after a Mori survey showed that seven out of 10 are bothered by other people's smoke, while about four out of 10 have left or avoided a restaurant or pub as a result. And it follows the introduction of smoking bans in bars and restaurants in New York and San Francisco.

In Britain, such curbs are also being considered by Liverpool, Sheffield, Birmingham, Brighton and Poole. In the Republic of Ireland, smoking in all public places will soon be illegal. Len Duvall, chairman of the London Health Commission, set up by the Mayor three years ago to improve public health, said: "Smoking is something that affects all Londoners whether they smoke or not."