Leaked Whitehall documents have revealed potential government plans to ban smoking outside pubs and restaurants to ease strain on the NHS.
When prime minister Keir Starmer first stepped into power one the first things he claimed he wanted to prioritise was the smoking ban – an idea first proposed by Rishi Sunak and will gradually make all smoking illegal by prohibiting the sale of tobacco to people born on or after January 2009.
Against this backdrop, it is understood that Labour also want to quickly ban smoking in some outdoor spaces, including pub gardens and outside restaurants as well as small parks and children’s play areas.
Although Keir Starmer has not confirmed whether these plans will become law, they were detailed in a leaked Whitehall paper seen by The Sun.
According to the document, ministers could also include shisha’s and vapes into the restriction, which wouldn’t cover large open spaces or private homes.
During a visit to Paris, Mr Starmer was asked about the plans, to which he replied: ‘My starting point on this is to remind everybody that over 80,000 people lost their lives every year because of smoking.
‘That is a preventable death, it’s a huge burden on the NHS and, of course, it is a burden on the taxpayer. So, yes, we are going to take decisions in this space, more details will be revealed, but this is a preventable series of deaths and we’ve got to take action to reduce the burden on the NHS and the taxpayer.’
The latest figures from charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) show that in the UK smoking causes three in 20 cancer cases and six in 20 cancer deaths, suggesting the new rules from the Labour government are extremely needed.
Health experts have backed the proposals while the hospitality industry have said it could particularly affect pubs and anti-smoking groups have said it should still be allowed in some open spaces so people don’t just do it at home, as that could cause adverse health effects.
Dr Layla McCay, director of policy at the NHS Confederation, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘It is absolutely the health challenge of our time. It’s the leading cause of preventable illness in the UK, so we are heartened to see that progress is being made and that the intention is moving forward to really address one of Britain’s main drivers of health inequalities.’
Image: Reza Mehrad
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