The government is to ditch plans to ban smoking in the gardens of pubs and restaurants in England.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said he didn’t want to cause further harm to the hospitality industry, adding that “people don’t want to see their high streets going down the pan”.
But the government is considering plans to make it illegal to smoke in children’s playgrounds and outside schools and hospitals, although there is little detail on how that would be measured or policed.
The main focus of the updated Tobacco and Vapes Bill is to create a smokefree generation across the UK by making it illegal for anyone currently aged 15 or under to ever buy cigarettes.
Streeting said he had discussions with the hospitality sector over the summer and decided not to go ahead with the ban on smoking outdoors in pubs, bars and restaurants that was being considered.
“There are lots of things that we can and will do on public health that don’t impact on people’s liberties or people’s livelihoods,” he told the Today programme on Radio 4.
Trade group UK Hospitality said the proposals had caused angst amongst the sector.
“Now is not the time for further cost to be added to businesses and we’re pleased the government has listened to and acted on the sector’s concerns,” said chief executive Kate Nicholls.
The British Beer and Pub Association, which represents 20,000 pubs in the UK, said it welcomed the change of heart, adding that the ban “would have led to many pubs shutting their doors and jobs being lost”.
Instead, under the new Bill, the government is considering extending smokefree legislation in England to outdoor areas such as playgrounds, schools and hospital grounds, to protect children and the most vulnerable from the harms of second-hand smoke.
However, it’s not clear how that would work in practice.
Streeting suggested enforcing these outdoor smoking bans could work in the same way as fines for fly tipping and anti-social behaviour.
“We will consult about the range at which the ban will apply but having enforcement officers going in and being able fine people for this activity I think will make a real difference,” he told BBC Breakfast.
The smokers’ campaign group Forest, said a smoking ban outside hospitals was “cruel” because it could be a comfort to patients, visitors and staff “who want a quiet, stress-free moment”.
In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, it is already an offence to smoke on NHS hospital grounds. That’s defined by the Scottish government as within 15 metres of an NHS hospital building.
In Wales, school grounds, public playgrounds and the outdoor areas of day-care and child-minding settings are also required to be non-smoking.
Proposals on vaping
A ban on the sale of single-use disposable vapes from next June has already been announced and is planned by all four nations of the UK.
With youth vaping on the rise, this move is aimed at clamping down on children getting hooked on nicotine by buying cheap, brightly-coloured vapes.
Under the new Bill, the government now has powers to restrict vape flavours, displays and packaging.
And it is considering banning vaping in some outdoor areas too, although some health experts are warning against such a move, saying it’s a confusing message.
“We have to focus on the immense harms to health caused by tobacco smoking and avoid putting people off switching to less harmful alternatives, such as vaping,” said Prof Caitlin Notley, professor of addiction sciences at the University of East Anglia.
This could unintentionally increase levels of tobacco smoking, she added.
The NHS says quitting smoking for vaping reduces the risk of dying from a number of diseases, including cancer, heart attack, stroke and type 2 diabetes. Cigarettes contain tobacco which releases thousands of harmful chemicals when burned.
A licensing scheme for shops is also in the plans, which means all retailers would need a licence in order to sell tobacco, vape and nicotine products in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. On-the-spot fines of £200 for retailers could be handed out for those selling to under-18s or stocking unregulated products.
The vaping industry said it welcomed the move, adding it was “a victory for law-abiding businesses” and would “stop rogue traders in their tracks from selling to minors and establishing a lucrative black market”.
A registration system for retailers selling these products has been in place in Scotland since 2017.
All the proposals will all be open to public debate over the next six months.
Health charities have welcomed the government’s plans.
Action on Smoking and Health said they would help create a country where young people would never start smoking but the charity warned that the government still needed to set out how to help the UK’s six million smokers to quit.
“This will require a properly funded plan, paid for by a levy on tobacco companies,” said the charity’s chair, Prof Nick Hopkinson.
Dr Charmaine Griffiths, British Heart Foundation chief executive, said she welcomed the government’s commitment to protect children and vulnerable people from second-hand smoke in schools, playgrounds and hospital grounds.
“We also welcome measures to make vaping less appealing to young people,” she said.
Cancer Research UK said the risks of passive smoking were well-established and it supported the government’s plan to create smokefree places.
Additional reporting by Jacqueline Howard.