More smokers despite tighter laws

More smokers despite tighter laws
By Craig Borley

Dramatic changes to smoking laws in 2004 have had no effect on reducing the number of people who smoke.

Ministry of Health figures show the number of people smoking is higher than three years ago - 23.5 per cent of the population compared with 23 per cent - despite the ban on smoking in pubs and clubs, introduced in 2004.

There is some good news - the number of people taking up smoking and second-hand smoking rates have fallen considerably in recent years.

But anti-tobacco campaigners say it is now time for the Government to show "political bravery" by raising tobacco taxes.

ASH director Ben Youdan said a lot of good had come from the smoking law reforms of 2004.

The ASH annual survey of New Zealand year 10 students had shown a considerable drop in uptake rates, and the improvement in air quality at indoor entertainment venues and workplaces was enormous.

But the Government was not being brave enough in tackling prevalence rates, he said.

"It's simple. They need to increase taxes. There has been no significant tax increase in eight years - it's only increased with the consumer price index."


International evidence showed tax increases on tobacco products were the most effective way to decrease smoking rates.

"We would like to see a bit more political bravery on this."

The biggest tobacco companies had annual turnover bigger than New Zealand's GDP, he said.

"But we've had great success over them.

"I think there has been a great history of David beating Goliath when it comes to tobacco control."

The director of Auckland University's Auckland tobacco control research unit, Dr Marwena Glover, agreed bigger tax rises were needed.

New Zealand was pioneering many strategies aimed at reducing smoking, but they were being undone by low taxation, she said.

"Increasing taxes is seen as political suicide, and that's unfortunate. Because it's one of the most effective strategies we have.

"It undermines all the other fantastic stuff we're doing. We've been a leader in this field many times, but lately we've been dropping back."

Smoking kills 5000 New Zealanders each year, according to Ministry of Health figures.

The Ministry's chief adviser on public health, Dr Ashley Bloomfield, said a World Health Organisation report had identified raising taxes as one of its six strategies to fight tobacco.

However, the most recent tax increase on tobacco in New Zealand was in 2000, although the price was adjusted each year to reflect consumer price index increases, he said.

Associate Minister of Health Damien O'Connor said the Government had no plans to change the current system.

Tony Ryall, National's health spokesman said his party held the same position.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz

Smoking ban hits snooker club hard

Smoking ban hits snooker club hard
LUCY BOLTON
Bosses at a Norwich snooker club said the smoking ban has caused such a drop in customers they will have to move to premises half the size to survive.

Canary Cue Club on St Mary's Plain is struggling to cater for smoking snooker players from their first floor premises.

The club, which has 36 tables, is now having to reduce the number to 18 and move to new premises in Oak Street.

The new location on the ground floor will mean it can cater for those customers who want to pop outside for a quick smoke.

Owner Ron Maxted said: “When the smoking ban came in last July I thought takings would be down, but not as bad as they are. We have lost 40pc of trade.

“We need to reduce our size, but also need somewhere people can go to have a quick smoke so we can get some more customers in again.”

The club has put in a planning application to convert an office block and a warehouse a few hundred yards from their existing location.

Mr Maxted added: “We can accommodate smokers at St Edmund's House as it's not on the first floor.”

The 24-hour club, which offers snooker, pool and American pool hopes the business will be able to survive after the downsize if planning permission is granted for the new premises.

England became smoke free on July 1, last year. The new law meant smoking was banned in every “enclosed or substantially enclosed” public places or workplace. Signs had to be put up to ensure staff and customers were aware and fines of £50 can be given to those caught smoking. Failure to prevent smoking in a public area can also lead to a fine by the own of up to £2,500.

Smoking shelters can be constructed however, they might need to adhere to planning permission, licensing, building control, noise and litter.

Mr Maxted feels it is easier to move premises.

Mecca Bingo, which has halls on All Saints Green and on Aylsham Road, has also suffered since the smoking ban.
http://new.eveningnews24.co.uk

FLAGSHIP BAY PUBS TO SHUT

FLAGSHIP BAY PUBS TO SHUT
Two of Torquay's biggest town centre bars are being closed and boarded up this week because of falling business.

Staff have been made redundant at the Hog's Head and Bar Med, at either end of Fleet Street, both owned by one of the UK's biggest pub and restaurant giants, the Laurel Pub Company.Cheap booze outlets and the smoking ban have been blamed for the sharp fall in pub business.

Torbay licencing bosses have praised both pubs, with Bay licensing officer PC Ian House, right, describing them as 'responsible' outlets'.

The national company also owns Yates's wine bar in Swan Street off Fleet Street, which is not affected by the sell-off.

One shocked member of staff at Bar Med, who did not want to be named, said: "Since last November the lights have gone out on Torquay's night-time economy.

"We were told today that we will close on Friday. Bar Med used to have 35 staff. Now there are only eight of us. We have all been made redundant.

"The supermarkets and all these cheap booze outlets, and the smoking ban last summer, have destroyed the Bay's night-time economy."

At the Hog's Head, seven full-time and four part-time staff were called to a meeting in Taunton last Tuesday.

The three-storey building closed for business on Monday and was being boarded up today.

Police said the closure of both venues would be a loss to the local licensing trade.

PC House said: "Both are very responsible outlets which are run impeccably by their designated supervisors."

He added: "As far as we are concerned we shall miss the contribution they make in striving to make Torquay a safe and enjoyable environment."

PC House accepted that the effects of easily available cheap booze did appear to be having an adverse impact: "It is a phenomenon which has been recognised over the last year."

He did not rule out the possibility of other premises suffering the same knockout blow.

PC House's colleague Neil Stanlake added: "I was touring local premises recently and was amazed at how many places just had two men and a dog inside. Nothing more.

"It shows that perhaps there are too many licensed premises. They want a bigger slice of the cake, but the portions are getting smaller all the time."

But Torbay's Licensed Victuallers' Association spokesman Steve Goss said: "There is nothing wrong with Torquay and the night life is not dead. These are recessionary measures by a big corporation.

"These large chain pubs are being found out now. They are suffering because they are too plastic.

"At Bar Med and the Hog's Head there is nowhere for folk to go outside and smoke, as far as I'm aware.

"Both started out as retail outlets and as far as I'm concerned they should be again. Torquay needs better shops. There are too many chain bars for the size of Torquay. It's just supply and demand.

"Bar Med was originally supposed to be an upmarket, continental food market."

A spokesman for the Laurel Pub Company, which owns 460 licensed pubs and restaurants nationwide, confirmed it is closing a total of 22 pubs across the country this week.

Maureen Heffernan said: "Torquay Hog's Head and Bar Med are among a number of Laurel pubs that are being closed due to the impact of the smoking ban and difficult trading conditions.

"We are working to try and relocate our employees where possible however in some cases this will lead to redundancies."

National financial commentators say Laurel is understood to be considering whether it wants to jettison between 50 and 100 pubs in total.

Bettesworths commercial property estate agents boss Barney Bettesworth says drinking establishments are feeling the effects of the recession and are struggling.

He said: "As the credit crunch hits people have less spending money so it's inevitable that sales have dropped.

"The smoking ban has certainly had an effect on town centre pubs.

"We're still selling properties and have a lot of interest. It isn't all doom and gloom.

"I was aware the Hog's Head was on the market and that Bar Med hadn't been doing very well.

"Hog's Head is difficult for trading because it's on three levels but I would imagine Bar Med will be snapped up because of its central position and size."

Paul Thornton, owner of Bed Bar and Hop and Grapes in Torquay, predicted these would not be the last businesses in the town centre to close this year.

"A lot of it is down to the supermarkets," he said.

"Quite simply they can sell it cheaper than we can buy it. It's a joke.

"Something like Becks is half the price we have to pay the brewery. A case of Corona is £5 cheaper in a supermarket. People just aren't coming out into town any more.

"And when they do, they drink at home before hand, and then we as licensees get blamed."

He added: "The smoking ban hasn't helped. The town is dead. When a big company like this is pulling out of the town, we are really in trouble.

"As a licensee of two successful businesses I'm really worried that these won't be the only businesses to close this year, and we are not just talking about pubs."

Michele Curtis, who runs the Watch Shop on the roundabout between Union Street and Fleet Street, said: "Torquay is turning into a ghost town.

"It's very quiet. The situation at Rock Walk really hasn't helped things. But these are more big buildings that are now empty. There's the post office and these two on top of all the other ones already closed. It's really bleak."
http://www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

Smoke ban shuts Blackpool club

Smoke ban shuts Blackpool club
By Shelagh Parkinson
A SECOND social club in Blackpool has closed blaming the smoking ban for driving members away.
And its owners today warned others will follow.

The curtain will come down on the Claremont Theatre Club on Friday after two decades.

It follows the shock closure of the Central Club in Kent Road.

Claremont owner David Hall said in its heyday his Sherbourne Road club boasted 1,000 members. Numbers have now dwindled to just 100.

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He said: "I've had days recently when I've only taken £20 all day and you can't survive on that. The smoking ban has crucified my business, and it's doing the same to everyone.

"More clubs in Blackpool are going to suffer the same fate as me. Even those that have got a smoking shelter are suffering, because you have two clubs - one inside and one outside.

"The Government has completely ruined the pub and club atmosphere. You can stay at home and have a drink and a cigarette. The heart has been ripped out of our clubs."

The Central Club closed just a few weeks ago.

A statement from management at the once hugely popular venue said: "We regret that due to increased running costs, government legislation and the smoking ban we are now closed."

Julie Sandwell, of Blackpool-based Sandwell Entertainments which books acts for venues including social clubs, said business was the toughest it had ever been in the agency's 27-year history.

She said: "It's a real shame the Claremont Theatre Club is closing. I have definitely noticed quite a drop in business because of the smoking ban.

Older people especially, who go to social clubs, don't want to stand out in the cold when they want a cigarette so they are staying at home instead."

A stewardess for the Bloomfield Bowling Club on Bloomfield Road said: "It's sad to hear clubs are closing.

"We've all been affected by the smoking ban, but thankfully we're hanging on.

"I never thought I'd see the day that clubs started closing."

Alan Pilborough, Chairman of Blackpool & District Concert Secretaries, said: "It's difficult to generalise about the smoking ban. Some say they're really struggling, but then others say people are coming back into premises now they are smoke-free.

"Clubs are quieter than they used to be, it's a sign of the times.
"When you can buy beer so cheaply in supermarkets and you can get so many channels on TV maybe there is less incentive to go out although I will always be a fan of live music."

Mr Hall, who founded The Claremont when he bought an old warehouse in 1988, will say farewell with a show on Friday.

The venue has been sold to the Blackpool Magicians Club who will use it as their headquarters with a library, magic shop, private theatre with bar and close-up magic room.

Mr Hall, himself a non-smoker, said: "Friday will be very tough and there will be a lot of tears."

Meanwhile, there are a number of pubs in the resort currently shut including The Bloomfield on Ansdell Road, the Oxford in Oxford Square, the former Lionel Vinyl's in Clifton Street, the Royal on Marton Drive and the Cedar Tavern in Cedar Square.

Dave Daley, president of the National Association of Licensed House Managers, blamed cheap supermarket booze as well as the smoking ban for the demise of many pubs and clubs.
http://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk

Barnsley wrong over outdoor smoking ban

Barnsley wrong over outdoor smoking ban

Written by: Ewan Turney


Outside eating areas are covered by the smoke free legislation – that is the belief of Barnsley council.

But MA legal guru Peter Coulson said the council is simply wrong in its assertion.

In a consultation document, entitled "Guidelines for street cafes", the council said it was considering banning smoking in outside licensed areas from 1 April.

If customers are caught smoking outside three times, the premises could lose its licence.

"One thing we wanted to achieve is the continental cafes and so we brought out the street cafe licence where people could apply for a street extension into the footpath for tables for food and for drinks to be served on a nice sunny afternoon in Barnsley," councillor Roy Miller told BBC Radio Sheffield.

"The problem we have at the moment is that some of these areas are turning into smoking areas.

"Now, when they apply for a licence for these areas serving food and alcohol the legislation is quite clear on the street cafe scene that it is seen as an extension of the existing eating facilities and as such the law regarding smoking applies to these areas."

He added: "If someone is sitting down eating some food and another person lights up at the side of them, the smoke will be blowing across at them all the time."


MA legal editor Peter Coulson said the Health Act only banned smoking in enclosed or substantially enclosed public spaces.

"The Department of Health can designate certain other areas to be smoke free but I've been told it has no plans to do so at the moment," he said.

"The councillor from Barnsley is wrong."

Disastrous

Also appearing on BBC Radio Sheffield, MA deputy news editor John Harrington blasted the proposals as an "terrible idea" that would be a "disaster" for the pub trade.

"The trade has invested millions, absolutely millions, in gearing up outdoor areas for smokers and to be told that money has been wasted would be awful."

He added: "Licensees are acutely aware of the impact the ban is having on their business and any extension of that would be disastrous for a lot of pubs.

"Let's hope this doesn't get adopted."

Pubwatch chairman Paul McNicholas, free-of-tie lessee at Durty O'Dwyers, added: "It would be difficult to police. I hope common sense prevails."
http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk

Smoking ban has bar owners fired up

Smoking ban has bar owners fired up
By Tim Gallagher Journal staff writer

I slip into the Miles Inn Monday at noon for a Coke and a Charlie Boy. A sign on the back door greets me. "No shoes. No shirt. No service."

They may have to add this to the sign: "No smoking."

The Iowa Senate on Wednesday debates a ban on smoking in public places. The Iowa House passed a bill last week. If the Senate follows, smoking will soon be off-limits in places like Miles Inn, a neighborhood bar where people have inhaled -- and exhaled -- since 1925.

Owner Denny Lias pours a frosty schooner of beer for a customer and talks about two big blows his business has been dealt.

"First, they took out our TouchPlay machines," says Lias, referring to lawmakers who enacted TouchPlay then struck it down a few months later and cost cozy bars like this tens of thousands of dollars in revenue.

Lias figures the big state-sanctioned casinos didn't like mom-and-pops having gambling at their fingertips. So his tiny piece of the gambling pie vanished like a puff of smoke. And now it appears even his puff of smoke will vanish.

The rub? The House bill would allow casinos to keep their smokers. The casinos get to have their cake and eat it too. Or smoke it, as the case may be.

"It's not fair, it's just not fair," says Lias, who bought the Miles Inn 2 1/2 years ago. "That's what bothers me. If they make it law, it should be law for everyone."

That would be the case if the Senate version of the bill lands on Gov. Chet Culver's desk. For as Lias filled his schooners Monday, a Senate panel stripped the casino exemption.

It's about healthcare?

Cigarettes have been under attack at the Iowa Statehouse for a year. Lawmakers hiked a per-pack tax on cigarettes by $1 last year in an attempt to discourage people from smoking by hitting them where they sit -- in the pocketbook.

It should also save the state money. Fewer smokers means less disease, which keeps healthcare costs from soaring. Healthier workers translates into a robust economy and more state tax revenue. Or so goes the theory.

"If this were all about healthcare, smoking would be banned at casinos, too," says Rick Swanson, owner/operator of The Chesterfield in Sioux City.

The House version, understandably, rubbed bar owners the wrong way.

"Again, they're squeezing the little guy," says E.J. McGuire, owner of Fort Onawa Pub in Onawa. McGuire held a humorous vigil when the lights went out on TouchPlay two years ago. He might have something else if smoking is banned: An auction.

"The smoking ban will probably put me out of business," he says. "I'm not a smoker, but probably 80 to 85 percent of my customers are and each one of them is opposed to this."

"This will be the last nail in the coffin," says Jim "J.P." Paul, owner/operator of the Venture Inn in tiny Blencoe, Iowa. "I'll try to start cooking outside once spring arrives, if I can hang on that long."

Paul said he'd call his legislators Monday, then visit his banker. With $5,000 in state licensing fees and property taxes due next month, he's unsure of his future. He lights a cigarette and says his business and home are both in jeopardy.

"I'm doing my books right now and it's not pretty," Paul says. "Our economy is in the pits because of the high prices of gas, propane and natural gas. Everything, like beer and food, travels here by truck."

McGuire feels the same economic pain. He wishes legislators would focus on economic development, not smoking bans in small bars and restaurants.

"You should be able to make a choice," Lias says while serving up a Charlie Boy and a Budweiser. "None of my customers are forced to come in here. And I should have that same choice as a business owner."

"Free enterprise in our business is out the window," Swanson concludes.

He and Lias openly discuss the next steps for the Iowa Legislature. Soon, lawmakers will ban hard liquor. They'll also begin legislating how many beers a customer may drink in a 30-minute time span.

I wipe the remnants of a Charlie Boy from my mouth and start to laugh.

Then I realize, they're not kidding.
http://www.siouxcityjournal.com

Gordon Brown barred from Elland pub over smoking ban

Gordon Brown barred from Elland pub over smoking ban
8 pubs closed in Leeds already
Gordon Brown Banned

sign our petition for smoking Licenses
No 10 petition

My Turn: City has tied its neck in a noose with smoking ban

My Turn: City has tied its neck in a noose with smoking ban

The intention of Juneau's smoking ordinance was to give nonsmokers a chance to enjoy public places without having to endure noxious tobacco fumes. The trouble with the ordinance is that it gave no alternative for those who smoke. As predicted, nonprofit organizations and smokers in general have been successfully finding loopholes in the present ordinance or simply breaking the new law.

Instead of learning from its mistakes, the powers that be gave a knee-jerk reaction to this, and are trying to pass an even stricter version of the smoking ordinance.

So far the smoking ordinance has been an abject failure. Local businesses are suffering enormously as a direct result, and downtown Juneau is now littered with cigarette butts, visible on the street. The full consequences of the smoking debacle, however, have not yet been felt.

I salute Sara Chambers for being the first Juneau Assembly member to ask how the decreased liquor tax revenues will affect municipal programs dependent on those tax dollars. Her question was well-placed and very difficult to answer.

The fact is, Juneau has tied its own neck in a noose with the smoking ordinance, and now it seems we are going to tighten it. To seal up the loopholes that some businesses and nonprofit organizations have found, a new ordinance is being drafted that will make smoking prohibited in an "enclosed public place," meaning an enclosed area or portion thereof, to which the public is invited or into which the public is permitted, including 12 bars, private clubs and any other enclosed places, including outdoor seating areas where alcoholic beverages are sold, or food is offered for sale.

What this new revision of the ordinance means is that there will be no alternatives, indoor or outdoor, for smokers. It's like saying, "You can't walk in the street today, and guess what? Tomorrow we're removing the sidewalk!"

This ordinance change is contradictory and counterproductive. It can have only two results: Smokers will find other loopholes in the ordinance, or they will break the law.

Enforcing such an ordinance would not only be costly but futile. We should be thinking of finding the middle ground that is going to work for all of us, and possibly rescue the bar business in general from economic starvation. Enclosed spaces within public areas could be a real solution to our problem, giving smokers a chance to manifest their habits in an environment that does not affect nonsmokers. Outdoor seating areas could also be a tool to further the city's aim, as some establishments have open areas out back. Then we could all have what we want, smokers and nonsmokers alike.

Smoking bans could very easily become the next chapter of the futile and costly "war on drugs." Without giving anyone a viable outlet for their habit, the idea will backfire, leading to unenforceable laws, wasted tax dollars and broke business people.

Instead, we need to be drafting a change in the ordinance that reconciles with business owners and the public. Shouldn't we be encouraging bars and clubs to build sealed and separate enclosed spaces, designated for smoking? Wouldn't that be the real solution? It seems that the new ordinance should be changed to read something like: Smoking is prohibited in public places, meaning an enclosed area or portion thereof, except for separately ventilated, enclosed spaces with negative pressure designated as "smoking areas," or outdoor seating areas not adjacent to other areas open to the public.

People won't quit smoking simply because it's illegal or immoral. If the city decides to make the present smoking ordinance stronger, the result would cost Juneau taxpayers even more, and with no guaranteed results.

To make smoking summarily unlawful without any alternatives is to fight against the waves of the sea. Instead, we should be looking at alternatives to a comprehensive ban on smoking in public areas.

• Joshua Adams is general manager of the Alaskan Hotel & Bar.
http://juneauempire.com

TOWN BAR'S LAST ORDERS

TOWN BAR'S LAST ORDERS

A Top Town bar has become the latest victim of the struggling pub industry - closing with the loss of 10 jobs as the smoking ban and credit crunch bite hard.

The Grimsby branch of Yates's has announced today it will call last orders for the final time as 22 pubs across the country follow suit.

Staff at the pub on the Riverhead were only told about the decision three days ago.

It is the latest blow to Grimsby's Riverhead which has suffered several setbacks in recent weeks.

Nightspot Musika has been forced to reduce its opening hours following a licensing review, and Australian theme pub Walkabout has brought in reduced opening hours amid rumours that its parent company is about to be bought out.

Chicago Rock Cafe, formerly owned by leisure firm Luminar, has stood empty since its closure in January last year - with no sign of reopening.

A staff member at Yates's, who does not wish to be named, said: "All of the staff were taken into a meeting with the area manager on Wednesday, and that is when we were told that it will be closing.

"There had been talk of it closing before now, but it still came as a massive surprise.

"Everybody is really, really upset. We have been through a lot and are a tight team. It is the end of an era."

The closure, which takes effect on Tuesday, comes in the wake of a poor year for the whole pub industry.

The smoking ban, which came into force in July last year, hit licensees the hardest and the

summer floods damaged the leisure sector even more.

The Yates's employee said: "The Riverhead in general has not been performing well.

"In the early days, there was a lot of trouble, because it was so busy. But things have turned around recently and it is a nice place to come to.

"The area manager is coming in on Monday to talk about redundancy packages, but a lot of staff including myself, don't qualify for them because we haven't been there for two years.

"There has been talk that some of us may be able to relocate, but not everyone is able to do that.

"I think it has been a really hard year for the pub industry, since the smoking ban and then with the recent credit crunch.

"We haven't been taking as much as we did at the start. We probably take about one third of the money, but I think this year has put the final nail in the coffin.

"It is going to be a really sad weekend."
http://www.thisisgrimsby.co.uk

Smoking ban exemptions go up in smoke for veterans clubs

Smoking ban exemptions go up in smoke for veterans clubs

Bills allowing smoking in private establishments, clubs struck down

Advertisement



Thursday, February 21, 2008

BY MEAGAN SEXTON

of GateHouse News Service

SPRINGFIELD - Veterans are no closer to being able to light up in private clubs and establishments such as VFW and American Legion posts because two pieces of legislation went up in smoke Wednesday.
The House Environmental Health Committee struck down bills that would have created exemptions in Illinois' new law banning indoor smoking. House Bill 4333 and House Bill 4104 would permit smoking in veterans' halls, including Veterans of Foreign Wars posts, and clubs.

"I certainly believe veterans are entitled to a lot of things, but we're not entitled to victim status and we should not be treated as such," said Jack Merkley, a Vietnam veteran and senior vice commander for VFW Post 11463 in Rochester. He testified against the legislation.

"Nor should we be entitled to assist our friends and neighbors to an early grave."

HB 4104, sponsored by Rep. Bill Black, R-Danville, would have allowed smoking in private clubs that were operating prior to Jan. 1 and where three-fifths of the members agreed to allow smoking. Committee members voted 11-3 against the bill.

"I am a confirmed nonsmoker. It is not my desire to repeal the Smoke Free Illinois Act in its entirety," Black said.

Black said he decided to propose the bill after a World War II veteran asked him, "Why can't I go to the American Legion post or the VFW, and if I want to have a cigarette on a Saturday afternoon and a beer with my ever-diminishing band of brothers, why can't I do that?"

Black explained the new law to the veteran and said that he didn't think any exemptions would be granted.

HB 4333, sponsored by Rep. Mike Boland, D-East Moline, also would have allowed smoking in veterans' halls and clubs. It was struck down, 10-4.

Boland, a nonsmoker, said he proposed his bill after hearing from constituents.

"Some time after the smoking ban went into effect, I received many calls from my local VFWs and American Legions that this would really hurt them and that they were already seeing a loss in their revenue," Boland added. "I think the key thing here in my support of this bill is to keep these posts alive, to help them survive."

Merkley said he hopes the proposed legislation is not an attempt to exploit the current national concern for veterans' issues in order to get a preferential exemption.

"It's now a pleasure to enter one of these posts knowing that my food and drink will taste normal, my eyes won't sting or water up and my clothes won't stink of second-hand smoke," Merkley said.
http://www.pjstar.com

Terence Blacker: When pubs die, we are all the poorer

Terence Blacker: When pubs die, we are all the poorer

Some news writes itself. A binge-drinking episode is only worth reporting if it involves the young. Drug use among the respectably middle-aged is not worth a paragraph. One murder or kidnap is fascinating, the other banal. The difference between the two is not the crime, but the social or racial profile of those involved.

One positive story of recent months was last year's ban on smoking in public places. Cleaner air, fewer horrid smells, an improvement in the health of the nation: even when the ban was extended to include private clubs, all but a few moaners saw it as the acceptable face of government nannying.

But giving certain stories the good-news treatment can lead to some strange distortions. Noticing from my local press that an extraordinary number of pubs were closing in East Anglia, each attributing the collapse in trade to the smoking law, I was intrigued to find out whether the trend was peculiar to East Anglia. It was not. All over the country, particularly in the north, local newspapers have been reporting that pub closures have risen steeply since November.

The national media has been considerably less interested – rather odd since the pub is normally closely associated with all this traditionally British. Yet an accelerating trend of closures, currently said to be around 67 every month, is barely mentioned in the news pages. When it was reported this week that between 50 and 100 outlets of the pub chain, the Laurel Pub Company, were about to be put into administration, the story appeared, but only in the financial pages.

Even consumer surveys, confirming this trend, have been presenting their findings with a cheery gloss. According to a recent report from Mintel, over two million adults admit to going out less since the smoking ban while 22 per cent, described as "a small percentage", said that it had affected their socialising. Admitting that "the smaller, independent, more traditional pubs" were being worst hit, Mintel's leisure analyst added that "those pubs it hasn't sounded the death knell for, the smoking ban has forced to re-evaluate their business". There were "positive moves" which had "fuelled profitable trends such as the blurring of the lines between a pub and a coffee shop".

In those places which don't want their pubs to become coffee shops, the effect of the smoking ban has been seismic. The pubs that are now closing have, for generations, been the focal point of the community, the place where company and conversation have mattered as much, probably more, than drinking. It is no surprise that, as pubs close and supermarkets promote cheap booze, we now lead the world in binge-drinking. Take away the pub and drinking at home is only and exclusively about the consumption of alcohol.

There are other unseen health implications of the ban that was meant to be so good for us. Recently, there has been a debate in Ireland as to why levels of suicide and depression have been rising in recent years. The experts have generally agreed on one of the main causes. "The pub was a social centre. It created a sense of togetherness," one of them said. "That is all dying out now and people can find themselves alone, in some cases drinking alone, which can lead to an even greater sense of loneliness."

Sincere busybodies within government will probably welcome the arrival of clean, respectable gastropubs and cappuccino joints. But it turns out that the old-fashioned pub, scruffy and smoky as it may have been, was bringing us together and doing us more good than anyone realised.
http://www.independent.co.uk

'Significant' rise in pub money issues

'Significant' rise in pub money issues
A corporate recovery firm has seen a "significant increase" in the number of pubs seeking financial assistance since the autumn. Fanshawe Lofts, based in Southampton and Bath, said high rents, beer prices and the smoking ban were to blame.

The company also said that leaseholders looking to sell were being asked to drop prices by up to 60%.

"Licensees of tenanted pubs continue to find it difficult to compete against freehouses because of the high cost of the fixed and regularly reviewed rent to the level of income currently being achieved, and also face higher stocking costs than the supermarkets, that are stacking their shelves with numerous drinks offers," said Dan James of Fanshawe Lofts.

"The pubcos ensure that the rent and cost of the drinks they supply is paid first and so there is no money left in the till for other creditors.

"Leaseholders placing their pubs on the market are being asked to reduce their asking price by as much as 60% in some cases."

The company said it was currently supporting a number of licensees through formal and informal insolvency procedures.

"With talk of a tough year ahead, the credit crunch and a very twitchy consumer market it is likely that last orders will be called on many of our locals unless they take action and quickly," he said.

"My advice to any landlords facing 2008 with trepidation about their finances is to take advice before time is called on their business."
http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/

Single-room pubs in a German state will be able to ignore the smoking ban, a court has ruled.

Single-room pubs in a German state will be able to ignore the smoking ban, a court has ruled.

The Constitutional Court of Rhineland-Palatinate ruled in favour of a group of bar owners who claimed they would go out of business when the ban comes into effect on 15 February.

The ban in Rhineland-Palatinate allows smoking areas that are closed off but five one-room bar owners claimed they were being discriminated against because they could not create a smoking area, according to Bloomberg.

The court accepted that 80% of their customers were smokers and they would lose business but rejected a complaint from a smoker that the ban impinges on his personal liberty.

The bars will now be allowed to put up a sign declaring themselves a smoking venue until a final ruling is made.
http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/

Smoking ban may be to blame for Illinois casino revenue declines

A fresh Illinois law that bans Mike Anthony from smoking as he pumps slot machines or punches the keys on a video poker machine doesn’t bother him so much, he said.

It’s not why Anthony was trying his luck Tuesday at Rhythm City Casino in Davenport.

“I don’t mind stepping outside for a smoke every once in a while, but lately, I just don’t think I win over there,” said Anthony, 47, of Rock Island who regularly hits area casinos. “It seems like in the last few months, you don’t have a chance to win over there.”

With the Illinois smoking ban in effect for its first month at the end of January, revenue figures released by state gaming regulators show a spike in income for eastern Iowa casinos and continued decline at Jumer’s Casino Rock Island for the 31-day period.

At Rhythm City in Davenport and Isle of Capri in Bettendorf, adjusted gross revenues for January reached their highest levels since October, according to figures released by the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission.

At Jumer’s, January figures from the Illinois Gaming Board showed a continuing decline in monthly revenue. Area casino spokesmen were not yet ready to say that the smoking ban is the sole factor driving revenue up in Iowa or pushing it down in Illinois.

“It is too early to determine if there is any trend,” said Mo Hyder, vice president and

general manager of the Davenport and Bettendorf casinos. “There are too many other factors. We’ve been doing more marketing where we focus on targeting customers. Couple that with the weather and the (Illinois) smoking ban, and it’s too early to tell.”

In comments last week, Bill Renk, spokesman for Jumer’s, said the smoking ban, harsh winter weather and a difficult economy made it hard to blame any single factor for January’s revenue decline.

But Wes Ehrecke, executive director of the Iowa Gaming Association, a lobbying group for the state’s casinos, said an overall decline in January casino revenue of 17.5 percent points to the Illinois smoking ban in public places as the likely source of higher revenue in eastern Iowa.

“(Illinois) attendance was also down for the month,” Ehrecke said. “There should be accommodations instead of prohibition, but Illinois’ ban seems to be benefiting casinos in eastern Iowa. This correlates with what we have seen when other states have instituted smoking bans.”

As the Iowa Legislature considers a smoking ban in public places, Ehrecke said, the primary bill being considered by lawmakers includes an exemption for casinos.
http://www.qctimes.com

Anti-smoking drug is linked to 37 suicides

Anti-smoking drug is linked to 37 suicides

Fears are growing over the safety of an anti-smoking "wonder drug", taken by nearly a quarter of a million Britons, after officials in America linked it to 37 suicides.

The Food and Drug Administration said it looks "increasingly likely" that there is a connection between the drug Champix and serious psychiatric problems.

The Mail on Sunday revealed in December that there were concerns over the drug after it emerged that seven deaths in Britain were thought to be linked to the pill.


Officials in America have linked an anti-smoking drug to suicides

But updated figures now suggest that 11 people taking Champix in the UK have died.

And reports of suspected adverse reactions to the drug to the Government's medicines watchdog, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, have risen by 35 per cent to 1,811 in just the past seven weeks.

The FDA began investigating Champix in November after a number of patients reported possible side-effects ranging from depression and agitation to headaches and nausea.

On top of the 37 suicides, it has recorded more than 400 cases of suicidal behaviour.

Manufacturer Pfizer has insisted a direct link between Champix and psychiatric problems has not been officially established and that nicotine withdrawal can lead to mood swings and behavioural changes.

But the FDA said it had found evidence that people taking Champix developed problems even if they were still smoking.

Bob Rappaport, a director at the FDA's drug-evaluation centre, said: "A number of compelling cases look like they are the result of exposure to the drug itself and not other causes."

Champix, which is marketed as Chantix in the US, was launched in Britain in December 2006 and touted as the most effective weapon in the fight to give up smoking.

In trials, 22.5 per cent of those who took the prescription-only drug were still not smoking after a year, compared with 16 per cent who used nicotine replacement therapy and three per cent relying on willpower.

The non-nicotine product works on brain receptors to relieve the cravings and withdrawal symptoms associated with giving up smoking.

The European Medicines Agency that licenses Champix has ordered a safety warning to be included in patient information.

It said that any users who develop suicidal thoughts should stop their treatment and contact their doctor, but there were no plans to ban the drug.

A spokeswoman for Pfizer said: "Clinicians should be aware of the possible emergence of depressive symptoms in patients undergoing a smoking cessation attempt, with or without pharmacological treatment, and should advise patients accordingly. Our priority is patient safety."
http://www.dailymail.co.uk

My local smoke-easy

My local smoke-easy
Jean Hannah Edelstein
Word of mouth suggests there are places all over the city where the management is taking chances with the law

The smell was the first thing that struck me when I paid my first visit to the small pub in Peckham. "That's funny," I said to my flatmate, wrinkling my nose, "it's been months since the smoking ban." It was an unlikely location for us to be meeting friends for a noize rock gig - so unlikely that we walked past it twice.

But to my surprise, the crew of regulars ("If anyone takes my seat, I'll kill him," snarled one, convincingly, as he went to the bar) was far outnumbered by twenty- and thirtysomethings in skinny jeans and overwrought haircuts.

We sipped our drinks and waited. And then the barman motioned for us to go into the room where the band was going to play. It was dark and windowless and had very poor ventilation. And it had something I hadn't seen in a pub since last June: ashtrays.

"It's the last smoking pub in London," people stage-whispered. Within seconds, everyone was lighting up: grinning, chain-smoking and sharing cigarettes with immense generosity. The fiftyish barman observed the debauchery with a benevolent, patronising smile: the party had a rebellious euphoria you'd probably have found in the Prohibition era, when Americans brewed gin in bathtubs.

This is the essence of the smoke-easy, where the air is heavy with not only the haze of cigarettes, but also a collective naughty thrill. Now that there's a paternalistic edict against it, having a smoke in the pub is edgy.

It isn't really the last smoking pub in London. There are no statistics, but word of mouth suggests there are places all over the city where the management is taking chances with the law. If customers can't smoke, after all, they'll drink at home, as demonstrated by the dip in sales reported by company-owned pubs at the beginning of 2008.

I returned to my local smoke-easy in early February, a couple of days after the papers crowed with the news of the first couple of pub landlords - and drinkers - to be punished for permitting their patrons to carry on smoking indoors. "This was not about smoking, it was about people's rights," the London Evening Standard quoted a Bolton landlord, Nick Hogan, saying after he was fined £3,000 plus £7,000 costs for failing, according to the court, to "take reasonable steps to cause persons smoking to stop".

There was no gig this time, but the hipster crowd again dominated the dirty banquettes, drinking pints and playing chess. Everyone was trooping outside to smoke, however. Maybe the landlord had changed his mind.

One of our friends feigned innocence and requested an ashtray - maybe, we figured, you had to ask. "You can't smoke indoors in England," the landlord snapped, hearing his American accent. "Go outside."

But half an hour later the same man strolled over to our table and placed an ashtray in the centre most hospitably: after 11 o'clock, the smoke-easy is open again.

"Isn't this illegal?" I asked, when I went to buy a round. The landlord and barman demurred. "Not after the doors are closed," the landlord said positively. Then he paused. "But don't tell anyone."

What would happen if someone called the local police? I wondered. I suspect that the overstretched cops in this crime-ridden area might have more important rules to enforce.
http://www.newstatesman.com/200802070019

Casino revenues drop

Casino revenues drop
Some gaming officials wonder if statewide smoking ban is to blame

SPRINGFIELD - Illinois casinos raked in less money last month than they did at the same time a year ago, and industry observers pin most of the blame on the new statewide ban on indoor smoking.
Adjusted gross receipts for the nine operating casinos totaled $131,465,000 in January, according to recently released figures from the Illinois Gaming Board. That's nearly a 17.5 percent drop compared with the January 2007 total of $159,268,000.

"We're not saying that the smoking (ban) is causing all of it," said Tom Swoik, executive director of the Illinois Casino Gaming Association. "But we believe a majority of the losses were as the result of the smoking ban."

"People are going outside to smoking shelters, spending less time at machines or tables," he added. "Less time on the machines and tables means less revenue."

Bad weather in January also probably contributed to the decline in revenue, he said.

David Strow, a spokesman for Boyd Gaming, which owns the Par-A-Dice in East Peoria, said his company has a policy of not discussing monthly casino revenues. Even so, he said that because of the smoking ban, "I think everyone in the Illinois gaming industry expected there would be some kind of impact.

"The extent of the impact remains to be seen."

The state ban, which tookfect Jan. 1, prohibits smoking in restaurants, bars and similar spaces. People still may smoke in their own homes.

To accommodate smoking patrons, the Par-A-Dice has built weather-controlled shelters, Strow said.

"We wanted to provide them someplace as close to the casino floor as possible," he said.

Illinois Gaming Board statistics show that the Par-A-Dice - the lone casino between the Chicago metropolitan area and the Metro East - took less of a financial hit than most of the other Illinois casinos.

"(East) Peoria is pretty much in the center of the state, so they don't have the competition from bordering states at the same level that the other boats do," Swoik said.

The Associated Press reported Friday that Harrah's Metropolis riverboat casino in southern Illinois is laying off about 30 people, in part because of the impact of the smoking ban. The casino employs about 1,000 people.

Swoik said he hasn't heard of any other casinos laying off employees, but he added, "I suspect that everybody is looking at various ways of cutting costs."

The Washington, D.C.,-based American Gaming Association has commissioned research on the issue of smoking in casinos, said director of communications Holly Thomsen. Bans in Delaware and the Canadian province of Ontario triggered declines in casino revenue, she said.

In the case of Ontario, she said, "Folks just crossed over to Detroit (Michigan) to the casinos there, where smoking was not banned."
http://www.pjstar.com

Licensee fined for flouting smoking ban

Licensee fined for flouting smoking ban
A West Midlands licensee is the latest to be fined for flouting the smoking ban.

Josephine Garfield has been ordered to pay £2,615 after admitting failing to stop people smoking, plus other offences.

Dudley Magistrates heard that more than a dozen police and council officers raided her pub - the Top Bell in Lye - and found customers openly smoking.

The court was told council officers had sent her written and verbal warnings following reports of people smoking inside.

Garfield told the court she asked all smokers to come inside because she suspected that trouble might flare up.

She said a man was previously found beaten up outside and customers told her the attackers were coming back that evening.

Garfield, of Queensway, Wollescote, also pleaded guilty to serving alcohol and playing music after hours.

She was fined £1,000 for flouting the smoking ban, £500 for serving after hours and £100 for playing music too late. She was ordered to pay £1,015 costs.

The court heard that magistrates chose not to revoke her licence because of her impressive record as a local licensees for 14 years.

Trade consultant Phil Dixon told the MA: “I live locally and I’m aware of other licensees who have had warnings [about flouting the smoking ban] - it’s now time to comply.”
http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk

Germany Deals with New Smoking Regulations

Germany Deals with New Smoking Regulations
Until recently, Germany was one of western Europe's last bastions for smokers. While bans went into place in the UK, Spain, Italy and Ireland, Germans continued to light up in restaurants and bars.

But now, that's changed. Germany's federal states have been introducing wide-ranging smoking bans, and they're not sitting well with many.

Some don't like the government trying to change their behavior. Others say traditional bars could become a thing of the past.

Finding Other Approaches

Some, like Barbara Palm, are just changing the way they do things.

To get into Palm's small neighborhood bar in Berlin these days, you have to ring the doorbell.

Locking the front door is the way she's getting around Berlin's ban on smoking in public spaces, which now includes bars and restaurants. It went into effect on Jan. 1. She calls her establishment a private Smokers' Club now, and hands people a membership ticket when they come in.

Inside, almost everyone has a cigarette in hand and the air is thick with smoke.

"Ninety-five percent of my guests are smokers and I live off them," Palm says. "With this law, the government is taking away our livelihoods. If I just have 5 percent of my guests left, the non-smokers, I can't even pay my rent."

Meeting Resistance

Germany's smoking bans have hit some fierce resistance. Maybe that's surprising in a country not exactly averse to rules and regulations.

Leading the fight are the owners of small, traditional bars where regulars gather for cheap beer and gossip, accompanied by lots of nicotine. Many owners say they don't have the financial means, or the space, to create a separate room for smokers.

Uli Neu has owned his bar in Tübingen, in southwest Germany, for 22 years. His state, Baden-Württemberg, introduced the smoking ban last August, and he says since then he's watched sales fall by 35 percent.

Helped by Germany's bar and restaurant association, he's filed a suit with the nation's highest court, hoping to get the law changed.

"I hope that they make an exception to the rule," Neu says, "so that small bars, the classic corner bars that live off of drink sales, can decide on their own to be smoking or non-smoking."

Berlin Easing In

Back in Berlin bars actually are deciding on their own, at least for now.

Perhaps because the city is considered home to the best nightlife in Europe, Berliners are being eased into the new, cleaner air. Although technically illegal to light up in bars, it'll be summer before the city starts imposing fines for it.

Simon Stettner, who's puffing away, says places with ashtrays still out are doing a booming business.

"There's one bar where it's allowed to smoke and, normally, it's a little ugly bar and was not very well visited — but right now it's full of people," Stettner says.

Implementation of State Regulations

If it sounds confusing in Berlin, it's actually pretty confusing all over Germany.

The ban wasn't passed on the federal level, so it's a patchwork of differing state regulations. Smoking in bars and restaurants is prohibited across the board. But if you want to light up in a festival tent at Cologne's carnival, no problem. Still, you better put it out at Munich's Oktoberfest, or you'll be facing a fine.

Bernd Hieber manages a Mexican restaurant in the southern city of Stuttgart, which has had a ban in place for half a year now. He understands that some people, especially bar owners, are angry and worried.

There were similar fears when smoking bans were introduced in other countries. But their experience gives him reason for hope.

"Countries like Ireland, or Scotland, the first one or two years, this is a time of struggling, but then in the longer run, things seem to be that the people accept it," Hieber says.

But he adds that with business at small bars falling off so dramatically right after the ban's introduction, it's uncertain if some will still be around if the customers start coming back.
http://www.npr.org

Cigarette may cost pub landlord £2,500 fine

Cigarette may cost pub landlord £2,500 fine

by Nick Evans

LANDLORD Mark Hughes faces an uncertain future after police and council officers found him defying the smoking ban.

They raided the Blacksmiths Arms, Sheerness, last weekend and caught him smoking what could be his most expensive cigarette ever.

The 46-year-old could now face a fine of up to £2,500 under the anti-smoking legislation introduced last year.

Two police officers and two Swale council officers visited 28 pubs on the Isle of Sheppey on Friday.

The Blacksmiths Arms, in Clyde Street, was the only place thought to be breaking the law.

Mr Hughes, who has been licensee for nine years, has been opposed to the smoking laws since their introduction and has called for them to be changed to allow pubs the choice of permitting smoking or not. He hit the headlines last May when he put a sign in his window declaring the Blacksmiths was a smoking pub.

He said: "I was smoking a cigarette in the back bar when the officers arrived. I was the only one doing so at the time, and given another 30 seconds I would have put it out.

"To say the least, I was rather abrupt with the officers and I have since phoned the council to apologise. They say they can’t let the matter rest so I am waiting to find out what will happen to me. I could be fined up to £2,500 or have problems with renewing my licence.

"I feel totally demoralised about the whole situation, and if trade doesn’t improve I can see myself shutting down inside a year and converting the pub back into houses or a shop. After 150 years that would be sad, but the promised upsurge in non-smokers going out to pubs hasn’t happened for me.

"About 90 per cent of my customers are smokers and many are of the older generation who have been smoking for much of their lives. Some are war veterans. I can’t let old people stand out in the wind and rain to have a cigarette so I allow them to smoke by the door to the garden area.

"This is a trouble-free pub among the chimney pots. I don’t allow underage drinking or drugs but it’s difficult enough keeping an eye out for those things, let alone stopping smokers."
http://www.kent-online.co.uk

SMOKING BAN HITTING PUB CHAIN

SMOKING BAN HITTING PUB CHAIN
Pub chain Regent Inns saw no signs of a trading revival last month as the smoking ban hit home and customers reined in spending.The company, which became a bid target following a profits warning in December, said like- for-likes sales continued to fall in January.

The update comes amid a flurry of takeover talk in the sector, with All Bar One operator Mitchells and Butlers a merger target for Punch Taverns, the UK's biggest pub chain.

Regent, which owns Walkabout bars and Jongleurs comedy clubs, yesterday said like-for-like sales for the half year to December 29 were down 3.8 per cent on the year before, compared with a one per cent fall in the 14 weeks to October 6.

Pre-tax profit for the half- year fell to £1.2 million, down from £3.6m.

But executive chairman Bob Ivell remained upbeat.

"Despite the immediate challenges to the sector presented by the banking crisis and its impact on consumer confidence, our brands remain strong and well-positioned to take advantage of a recovery," he said.
http://www.westpress.co.uk

Pipe smokers in an outside shelter for the competition

Pipe smokers in an outside shelter for the competition
Tobacco fans were still smoking in Harpole last night as the village defiantly lit up for the annual pipe smoking contest.
The competition, dating back more than 100 years, was held outdoors for the first time in its history in a specially erected gazebo outside The Bull pub.

Clive Rimmer, owner of the pub and first to be knocked out of the contest, said he had been concerned about the effect the smoking ban would have on the tradition, but added he was sure Harpole residents would keep the spirit burning for many decades to come.

He added: "Records of the contest go back to 1920 but it has been running since a long time before that. It doesn't matter that there's a ban . . . the villagers wouldn't let us not run the contest.

"It's not as nice smoking outside in February, but we couldn't move the contest to the summer . . . the tradition is that it happens on Pancake Day."

Champion smoker of the night was Brian Waller, aged 70, from Shelleycotes Road, Brixworth.

Speaking after completing his marathon session, which lasted one hour and 18 minutes, he said he was delighted to have won.

He added: "I've no idea how I won, really. I feel good. It's a matter of concentration and not too much sucking, I think. And a little blowing."

Seven men braved the wintry conditions to try to become the last man smoking on his regulation clay pipe.

Former champion Richard Starmer, aged 73, was among them.

The Carrs Way resident said he had been competing in the annual event on and off for 50 years, last winning in 2000.

He said: "It's a bit of a village tradition. It doesn't bother me smoking outside. I'm a farmer so I'm used to the cold anyway."

Pipe loader George Wilson, aged 53, has won the contest in 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2002.

He said: "I only smoke pipes once a year, to be in this competition. It's just a great tradition that has been going for a very very, very long time. "

And 2007 champion, 63-year-old Mount Pleasant resident Mick Woolacott, said there was no real secret to winning.

He said: "You just keep it alight and that's it. A lot of it is luck."
http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk

Smoking ban’s poor plan leads to closed businesses

Smoking ban’s poor plan leads to closed businesses

Published Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Editor, the Tribune: In regard to the 16 restaurants and bars and two bingo games closing up because of the smoking ban or whatever else that causes this to happen: Many of these places had been open for many years, through harder times than these we are going through now. So that excuse of recession is not very good.

I don’t think people realize that these businesses paid for business licenses, liquor licenses, city taxes, county and state taxes besides all the food and drinks they paid for.

Plus, more than 200 people who don’t have jobs anymore and all the empty buildings all over the city.

I think all this that happened is on the mayor’s and the city leaders’ heads with their poor planning and poor leadership since Ray Beck retired.

Warren Mordica Sr.
http://www.columbiatribune.com

Hamburg Minister Exploits Smoking Ban Loophole

Hamburg Minister Exploits Smoking Ban Loophole
German smokers are wrestling with the smoking ban now in effect in most of the country. While public officials are supposed to be setting a stoic example, Hamburg's Interior Minister Udo Nagel has instead found a loophole to allow him to continue puffing on his pipe in his office.

Udo Nagel is not letting Germany's new smoking ban get between him and his pipe. Hamburg's interior minister was named "Pipe Smoker of the Year" by Germany's Tabak Forum in 2004.
The smoking ban (more...) that went into effect in half of German's federal states on Jan. 1 has disgruntled many German smokers. While restaurants and bars look for creative ways to subvert the ban (more...) and satisfy their smoking clientele, Hamburg's interior minister has found a personal solution by having his office declared an official "smoking room."

A long time pipe-smoker, Udo Nagel has thus provided a nicotine refuge for himself and some of his colleagues at the ministry, who were not in a position to turn their own offices into smoking rooms. Nagel has defended the action saying that he usually only smokes in the room when "no other person was present" and pointed out there is no smoking during official meetings.

The Green Party in Hamburg's parliament has accused Nagel of violating the general prohibition on smoking in the state's public offices that was introduced at the beginning of the year. The party also claims he is contravening the new law by failing to present a "model example" for children and youth.


The German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg, shocked by the Hamburg upstart, is now pushing for a total smoking ban in all public offices and private companies. Workplace smoke, they claim, is inhaled by other employees, despite ventilation and filtration systems. And pipes are said to be responsible for "particularly heavy particle emissions."

nmb/SPIEGEL/AP

'Smoking ban fuels street violence'

'Smoking ban fuels street violence'

By Stef Hall
Violence in pubs in Preston city centre is being pushed on to the streets because of the controversial smoking ban, police warned today.
Insp Steve Evans said the sudden increase of smokers lighting up outside pubs and restaurants since the ban on July 1 last year has "provoked" trouble in the city centre.

He warned innocent smokers could fall prey to yobs intent on causing trouble by picking fights in the street.

And today, Lancaster police chief, Chief Supt Tim Jacques, said the ban has meant more people are staying at home to drink, sparking more violence in homes and neighbourhoods in the city.

Insp Evans told the Evening Post: "Our figures for violent crime in the city centre are roughly the same, but the focus is shifting on to the streets rather than in pubs.

"The smoking ban has put more people on the streets which can provoke trouble.

"It stands to reason. If there are 20 people stood outside in the street, someone walking the streets looking for trouble has more people to encounter and a bigger choice."

He added: "We are not saying smokers are responsible for violent behaviour - but those people stood outside having cigarettes would normally have been in pubs and not encountered the troublemaker."

This latest revelation comes two weeks after the Evening Post revealed how Church Street in Preston is the most dangerous street in Lancashire with more recorded violent crime than anywhere else in the county.

Ther
e were between 515 violent incidents in the city centre out of the 1,132 reported in Central Division between July and December 2007 compared to 488 from the 1,109 total for Central Division in the same period in 2006.

Ronnie Fitzpatrick, landlord of the Dog and Partridge, Friargate, Preston, said: "I think there is less tension in pubs because there is more room - the smokers are outside so not as many people bump into each other, which was often a source for trouble."

Insp John Ainsworth, of Lea Police, said: "People are staying at home more since the smoking ban. Traditionally people would go to the pub, get a takeaway on the way home and it was more relaxed."
http://www.lep.co.uk/

'Challenging' times for pub companies

'Challenging' times for pub companies
By Jonathan Sibun
Greene King and Fuller, Smith & Turner yesterday became the latest pub companies to report slowing sales in the wake of weakening consumer confidence and the smoking ban.

Bury St Edmunds-based Greene King said like-for-like sales in its managed pubs in the 38 weeks to January 20 fell 0.1pc, a figure analysts said implied a 3.3pc fall in the last eight weeks.

The company, which runs 2,200 pubs across the UK, reported a 0.2pc fall in sales in its tenanted division in the final 38 weeks.

Greene King said recent trading had become "more challenging".

Loch Fyne, the restaurant chain acquired by Greene King in August last year, has seen like-for-like sales rise 2.3pc since the acquisition.

Fullers issued a more upbeat trading statement as the London-based pub group took advantage of strong trading in the capital versus the regions.

The company said that following a record first half of the year trading conditions were "less favourable" and growth had slowed to 4pc in the 43 weeks to January 26.

Michael Turner, chairman, said: "Since the half year, the slowdown in consumer spending and input price inflation on top of the smoking ban have made operating conditions more challenging."

Both brewers said they were on track to meet market expectations for full year profits.

Greene King's share price closed up 9.5 at 755p while Fuller's rose 20 to 570p.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk

'Challenging' times for pub companies

'Challenging' times for pub companies
By Jonathan Sibun
Greene King and Fuller, Smith & Turner yesterday became the latest pub companies to report slowing sales in the wake of weakening consumer confidence and the smoking ban.

Bury St Edmunds-based Greene King said like-for-like sales in its managed pubs in the 38 weeks to January 20 fell 0.1pc, a figure analysts said implied a 3.3pc fall in the last eight weeks.

The company, which runs 2,200 pubs across the UK, reported a 0.2pc fall in sales in its tenanted division in the final 38 weeks.

Greene King said recent trading had become "more challenging".

Loch Fyne, the restaurant chain acquired by Greene King in August last year, has seen like-for-like sales rise 2.3pc since the acquisition.

Fullers issued a more upbeat trading statement as the London-based pub group took advantage of strong trading in the capital versus the regions.

The company said that following a record first half of the year trading conditions were "less favourable" and growth had slowed to 4pc in the 43 weeks to January 26.

Michael Turner, chairman, said: "Since the half year, the slowdown in consumer spending and input price inflation on top of the smoking ban have made operating conditions more challenging."

Both brewers said they were on track to meet market expectations for full year profits.

Greene King's share price closed up 9.5 at 755p while Fuller's rose 20 to 570p.

Complaints made over smoking law breaches

Complaints made over smoking law breaches
By Jo Winrow
Nearly 100 complaints have been made to Bradford Council over people flouting the smoking ban in the first six months of its introduction.

Ninety of these allegations relate to premises, while seven were complaints about smoking in vehicles, such as company cars used by more than one member of staff.

As a result 89 written warnings were issued by environmental health experts at the Council.

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In addition a lack of No Smoking signs saw two £200 fixed penalty notices being handed out and a prosecution is pending on three counts.

Bradford city centre venue Markaz Restaurant and Shisha Lounge is the business at the centre of the trial which is due to begin next Thursday.

The charges that owners Shabbir and Syima Mer Ali face include two of failing to stop customers smoking shisha pipes on two separate occasions, and the third is over a failure to put up No Smoking signs.

The Centenary Square restaurant opened in October 2005 and provides a lounge for fruit flavoured tobacco in hookah-pipes to be smoked. The ban introduced in July prevents any smoking in enclosed spaces in England.

But the Mer Alis believe, along with those behind the national Save the Shisha Campaign, that they should be exempt on economic and cultural grounds.

Mrs Mer Ali said: "It's not that we want to break the law or make things difficult. But there are things happening at national level. We have invested a lot of money in Bradford and as a business we could not stop the shisha, then start it up again if the law were to change. It would make the business unviable, so we are trying to expand. We now serve alcohol and hope this will expand our customer base."

Mr Mer Ali, who is representing Markaz at the trial, will be arguing "reasonable excuse" and is calling on those behind the Save the Shisha Campaign to help them in what could be a test case.

Many believe shisha smoking is less harmful in cigarettes because the tobacco quantity is smaller and is filtered through water. But earlier this month Egyptian scientists found that it poses a greater health risk and smoking 25 grams of tobacco through a shisha is equal to smoking 60 cigarettes.

John Blanchfield, the Council's environmental health manager, said of the figures relating to the legislation: "Since July 1, 2007, we have carried out 835 inspections of premises relating to the smoke-free leglislation which revealed 96 per cent compliance with no smoking requirements and 90 per cent compliance with signage.

"We have received 90 premises related and seven vehicle-related complaints alleging contraventions resulting in the issue of 89 written warnings.

"We have continued to monitor premises where it is alleged that offences are continuing."
http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk

Smoking ban blamed for pub chain's woes

Smoking ban blamed for pub chain's woes

A brewery which owns pubs throughout Lancashire has reported a "difficult" year as it feels the full impact of the smoking ban.
Cains Beer Company plc, which runs the popular Last Orders chain, said the full effect of the ban was now being felt in its 108 pubs throughout the North West.

Chief executive Sudarghara Dusanj also reported that the entire industry was also feeling the pinch of high costs and the downturn in consumer spending.

However, the company, which took over the Preston-based Honeycombe Leisure portfolio last year, is expected to announce significant investment in improvements across its estate over the next year.

He said: "Challenges exist, but the progress made so far has been encouraging and we are confident that the model we have put in place will rejuvenate the pubs and build on the success of the brewery and its brands across our own estate, the on trade and off trade.

"The current trading climate for our industry is difficult but not unforeseen and the business is well placed to build a sustainable and profitable future under a strong brand with an experienced team."

In its preliminary financial results for the 18 months up to October 31, Cains said that despite strong "competitive pressures" the group continued to make progress and had put in place "various initiatives" to remove crippling costs from the business.

The statement added that t
he integration of the Honeycombe estate, including the closure of its head office in Lytham Road, Fulwood, had been completed along with Cains' beer being sold in its pubs.

Mr Dunsanj, who took over Honeycombe with his brother, Ajmail, in May last year, said there were a number of opportunities for investment including the start of a £5m refurbishment programme which will see eight sites refurbished over the next 12 months.
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