Home / Press review / Archive / Magazine / Society / Smoking bans / From the press

Protection or discrimination?

European journalists discuss whether smoking bans are sensible measures, whether smoking should be featured in cartoons, criticise militant attitudes against smoking or question the EU's authority to impose smoking bans.

Attitudes in different countries

The Times - United Kingdom | Wednesday, 22. March 2006

Pub clients scorn Scotland's public smoking ban

The public smoking ban set to take effect in Scotland this weekend is a 'Scots tragedy', according to columnist Magnus Linklater, who spoke to customers ... » more

The public smoking ban set to take effect in Scotland this weekend is a 'Scots tragedy', according to columnist Magnus Linklater, who spoke to customers at a working-class pub in Edinburgh. "They talk about which is better, a slow death in the fug of the public bar or a freezing death out on the pavement after the ban is introduced. The jokes come enveloped in a cloud of smoke from the roll-ups that are the favoured brand in these parts. They talked with a healthy mixture of ridicule and contempt about the politicians who rule their lives. These are not people who regard their health or longevity as the prime concerns of life; they put small pleasures first. It is their choice — something that doctors and politicians find hard to comprehend."

» more information (external link, English)
More from the press review on the subject » Society, » United Kingdom
All available articles from » Magnus Linklater

The Economist - United Kingdom | Thursday, 1. February 2007

France smokers take to the street

"Pedestrians in Paris are used to dodging déjections canines (dog-poop), but these days a new hazard is blocking the French capital's pavements: » more

"Pedestrians in Paris are used to dodging déjections canines (dog-poop), but these days a new hazard is blocking the French capital's pavements: smokers fleeing the country's new anti-tobacco law", comments the British weekly. "On February 1st France followed a European trend by making it illegal to smoke in offices, so forcing staff out into the streets to light up. The country's strict working-time rules, though, add a particular French twist: should smoking breaks be counted as part of the 35-hour week? ... The street is the last refuge, and employers have been in delicate negotiations over how to count pavement time. To the outrage of some, several companies have decided to clock out staff as they leave the building for a smoke, and deduct the time from working hours."

» full article (external link, English)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Health Policy, » France, » Europe

Sega - Bulgaria | Friday, 2. February 2007

The Bulgarian way of life under threat

Janina Sdrawkowa takes stock of Bulgaria's first month in the EU: » more

Janina Sdrawkowa takes stock of Bulgaria's first month in the EU: "The country's accession to the EU has been accompanied by the imminent and inevitable threat of inflation - in all areas. However, membership isn't just affecting our finances, it's also having a profound impact on other areas, on our mentality and our way of life. There's the heavy tax on homemade spirits, and cucumbers now have to be 25 cm long and straight to be qualify for the A-class category… And now another threat is looming on the horizon: smoking is to be confined to the home. All these things are fundamental to the Bulgarian way of life. Without spirits, salad and cigarettes, life for Bulgarians is as boring and pointless as a cucumber."

» full article (external link, Bulgarian)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Public Culture, » Consumers, » Tax Policy, » Bulgaria
All available articles from » Ianina Sdravkova

Criticism of smoking bans

The Independent - United Kingdom | Wednesday, 15. February 2006

England's public smoking ban

"One after another, the least likely places - Ireland! New York! - have fallen to the forces of virtue, the proponents of getting hammered in ... » more

"One after another, the least likely places - Ireland! New York! - have fallen to the forces of virtue, the proponents of getting hammered in atmospheres of Alpine purity, and legions of prigs everywhere," columnist Philip Hensher laments after MPs voted to ban smoking in all public places in England from the summer of 2007. "... If only people could maintain a sense of proportion, and a certain respect for other people's innocent pleasures. Few people now smoke if they know it is disagreeable to anyone in the immediate vicinity, but with these restrictions, there is no doubt that smokers will start to insist on their right to do so wherever it is permitted. I would just like to ask, too, whether medical research has established how many years it takes off your life to spend your time in a state of mean-spirited, nagging, neurotic little-Hitlerism."

» full article (external link, English)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » United Kingdom
All available articles from » Philip Hensher

Libération - France | Tuesday, 8. August 2006

Can employers refuse to hire smokers?

In an interview with Matthieu Ecoiffier, Gérard Audureau, president of the French anti-smoking association, 'Droits des non-fumeurs' [Non-smokers' Rights], explains why it is unthinkable to ... » more

In an interview with Matthieu Ecoiffier, Gérard Audureau, president of the French anti-smoking association, 'Droits des non-fumeurs' [Non-smokers' Rights], explains why it is unthinkable to refuse to hire a smoker in France. "It's not in the French mindset and no-one wants it. That includes anti-smoking groups. When the Geneva-based World Health Organization drew up contracts that excluded smokers, we clearly stated our opposition. It's real discrimination. Swiss law doesn't prevent them from discriminating. In France it wouldn't work either morally or legally. Tobacco isn't outlawed. There's no reason why smokers should be. It is, however, their duty to abide by rules and regulations in force in the workplace."

» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Health Policy, » France
All available articles from » Gérard Audureau

Mladá fronta Dnes - Czech Republic | Friday, 2. February 2007

Czech smokers take to the restaurants

Economist Jiri Schwarz of Prague's Liberal Institute expresses his doubts that proponents of a European-wide smoking ban are genuinely concerned about protecting the health of non-smokers. According to him, this is just another case of politicians wanting to tell people what to do: » more

Economist Jiri Schwarz of Prague's Liberal Institute expresses his doubts that proponents of a European-wide smoking ban are genuinely concerned about protecting the health of non-smokers. According to him, this is just another case of politicians wanting to tell people what to do: "Everyone knows that people smoke in restaurants. When you enter a restaurant, you're tacitly agreeing to be surrounded by cigarette smoke. It's an entirely different matter if the state bans smoking in public buildings or on the street, or in other words, in all public places. However, there are private places as well as public places, and restaurants are private spaces. What right does the state have to impose regulations on the owner of such a place?"

» full article (external link, Czech)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Health Policy, » Czech Republic, » Europe

Smoking bans for Tom and Jerry

Público - Portugal | Wednesday, 23. August 2006

Tom and Jerry accused of setting a bad example

Nuno Pacheco denounces the fundamentalism of anti-tobacco crusaders whose fight on behalf of public health occasionally leads to blatant censorship. "A few days ago, a British citizen discerned a dangerous incitement to smoke in two Tom and Jerry cartoons: » more

Nuno Pacheco denounces the fundamentalism of anti-tobacco crusaders whose fight on behalf of public health occasionally leads to blatant censorship. "A few days ago, a British citizen discerned a dangerous incitement to smoke in two Tom and Jerry cartoons: in one, there was someone smoking a cigarette, in the other, a cigar. The zealous citizen filed a complaint on the grounds that this was harmful to children. He was heeded: the scenes were cut. For whose benefit ? That of the children ? ... It would be normal to see them, knife in hand, chasing their parents or throwing their brothers out the window. This is what we can see in cartoons. For the time being, none has complained. ... Countries where drugs, war and violence are a daily spectacle for everyone (including children) take pleasure in cracking down on minor dangers in an attempt to reveal an inner purity that they lack."

» more information (external link, Portuguese)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Health Policy, » United Kingdom
All available articles from » Nuno Pacheco

euro|topics-Dossier of 31.1.2007

Main focus of Wednesday, 31. January 2007

An EU smoking ban?

Yesterday, European Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou presented a strategy paper recommending laws for the protection of non-smokers. The paper has triggered a debate across Europe. ... » more

Yesterday, European Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou presented a strategy paper recommending laws for the protection of non-smokers. The paper has triggered a debate across Europe. Should each nation be allowed to decide for itself whether a smoking ban is compatible with its bar and restaurant culture or should the EU impose a pan-European smoking ban?

More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Health Policy, » Europe
All available articles from » Gerold Büchner

Further articles on the subject » EU Policy, » Health Policy, » Europe
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Health Policy, » Europe