Wales introduces new smoking laws

Print

Wales has introduced legislation to make it illegal to smoke outside hospitals, schools, and other outdoor areas.

Smoking-cigarette.jpg

From today (1 March), all hospital grounds, school grounds, public playgrounds, and outdoor care settings for children in Wales will be required to be smoke-free.

In addition, over the next year and by 1 March 2022, smoking in bedrooms in hotels, guest houses will be phased out and self-contained holiday accommodation will be required to be smoke-free. Mental Health Units will also be required to phase out any smoking rooms by 1 September 2022.

Eluned Morgan, the Welsh minister for health and social services, said: “Extending the smoke-free requirements to more places will further protect the public from harmful second-hand smoke and will help reduce a known trigger for ex-smokers to restart.

“Banning smoking in places where children and young people spend their time, such as public playgrounds, school grounds and care settings, will also help to denormalise smoking and crucially reduce the chances of children and young people taking up smoking in the first place.”

In response, Simon Clark, director of Forest, said: “The extent to which the Welsh government is trying to micro-manage people’s lives is increasingly unhealthy. Most smokers use their common sense and don’t smoke around small children. They don’t need politicians telling them how to behave.

“Enough is enough. Instead of more laws designed to penalise a legitimate habit, the government should focus on education, not coercion.”