FoI reveals region’s smoking ban success
The smoking ban has mostly eradicated cigarette fumes from public places after new figures revealed that there have been just five prosecutions in Norfolk and north Suffolk since it came into force.
Despite some landlords blaming the no smoking legislation on a loss of trade, statistics obtained by the EDP show that a large proportion of owners and drinkers complied with the law.
Figures gained under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that 10 district and borough councils across Norfolk and north Suffolk issued only 68 fixed penalty notices to people caught breaching the ban since it became law on July 1, 2007.
A further 49 verbal and written warnings were also issued and local authorities only had to take five landlords, premises owners, and taxi drivers to court – two in Great Yarmouth, one in Breckland, one in Lowestoft, and one in west Norfolk.
Pub officials and council figures yesterday hailed the success of the ban, which was met with very little resistance from smokers.
Graham Freeman, chairman of the Norwich and Norfolk branch of the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), said the smoking ban had not had the disastrous effect some pub, club and bar owners had warned of.
“I think smokers did stay away at first, but non smokers found the pubs cleaner and were going in because it was a non-smoking atmosphere and there was an increase in customers. Smokers have since come back and used the shelters.”
“Some pubs do blame the smoking ban on a loss of trade, but when you look at the evidence, people have not stayed away,” he said.
Council officers across Norfolk and north Suffolk made in excess of 15,000 official and covert inspections to premises over the last three and a half years and have received almost £2,000 in fines and fixed penalty fees since the ban came into force.
The local authorities received 430 reports of people breaking the no smoking law between 2007 and the end of 2010.
And council officers in South Norfolk, Broadland, and Mid Suffolk have not had to dish out a single fixed penalty notice or warning, whilst Waveney District Council handed out 34 on the spot fines, according to the FoI responses.
Norwich has witnessed just seven fixed penalty notices to illegal smokers since the summer of 2007.
Nick De’Ath, landlord of the Unthank Arms, in Norwich, and chairman of the city centre licensing forum, said he was not surprised by the results.
“It shows that the general public are a fairly sensible bunch and people abide by the law. I never expected anyone to stand up against it. It probably shows it was not such a ridiculous law in the first place.”
“When it first came in, people said they would never go to a pub again, but it all levels itself out and three years down the line I can not remember the last time I saw someone smoking in a public place,” he said.
Council officials across Norfolk and north Suffolk said the majority of their smoking inspections coincided with doing other environmental health, licensing and health and safety checks and compliance amongst premises owners had been good.
source:
http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/politics/
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