Westminster Diary - 12th January 2006

Thursday, 12th January 2006

The House of Commons will soon have to determine whether we should permit smoking in any, some or all workplaces and enclosed public places. The Government’s Health Bill makes provision for such places to be smoke-free, but also allows for an exemption for licensed premises which do not serve food. It is of course the rules relating to licensed premises which are causing the most controversy.

I do not smoke. Many who do tell me that pubs and restaurants are places where they particularly like to smoke and that doing so in separate smoking sections does no-one else any harm. I disagree. Some will argue, including many fellow Conservatives, that a ban on smoking in public places is unduly restrictive of smokers’ freedom and is therefore incompatible with my party’s philosophy. I disagree again.

The Government say, at least at the time at which I write this article, that their proposal to allow smoking in pubs that do not serve food is a reasonable compromise. I am afraid that I disagree with that too.

I disagree with each of these three points of view for the same reasons. It is not my wish nor, I believe, is it my place to stop responsible adults smoking in private or open spaces if that is their desire. The state’s role should be to educate about the risks of smoking not to prohibit the activity altogether. It is true to say that non smoking patrons like me can choose a non-smoking section or a non-smoking pub. My concern however is for those who cannot make that choice – those for whom a smoke filled pub is not a place of recreation but a place of work. Those who work in pubs and restaurants are often those who are obliged, as students or those who have childcare responsibilities, to work in the evening economy and are often also those without the qualifications and economic muscle to demand better working conditions. It is not realistic to say that they, like their customers, could simply choose another pub or restaurant where smoking does not take place. We know that second hand smoke kills and those who work in smoky places damage their health involuntarily.

In my view, the Health Bill should seek to protect their health above all. They should not be expected to breathe other people’s smoke while at work. To the smokers I say that these are the people you harm in a separate smoking section – they still have to enter it. To those who say a full ban is un-Conservative, I say that my Conservatism is basically about support for the freedom of the individual up to the point at which the individual’s actions damage others and that point is reached in this context. Finally to the Government I say that it is nether logical nor sensible to argue that second-hand smoke does less damage to those serving beer than it does to those serving burgers.

That is why I support a full ban on smoking in workplaces and enclosed public places.

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Updated on Thursday, 12th January 2006