Very few countries have adopted the total public place smoking bans that have been introduced in Ireland, Norway and New Zealand and a complete ban in 1999 in British Columbia in Canada, for example, was overturned by the courts in March 2000 on the basis that it was excessive. Most governments are seeking to balance freedoms and responsibilities. For examples of more balanced approaches around the world, see Making room for smokers and non-smokers on the right.

Health
Some public health lobbyists who call for draconian bans argue that ETS is dangerous, causing chronic diseases such as lung cancer and heart disease in non-smokers.The science on ETS and these types of chronic diseases is in our view not definitive and at most suggests that if there is a risk from ETS exposure, it is too small to measure with any certainty.

Some asthmatics do have adverse reactions to smoky atmospheres and quite a large number of studies report a statistically significant increase in adverse respiratory symptoms in pre-school children exposed to ETS at home. It has long been our view that people should not smoke around children, pregnant women and people with respiratory conditions.There is more about ETS health studies in Smoking and health, Environmental tobacco smoke.

Banishing smoke, not smokers
We believe that governments, employers, the hospitality industry, the tobacco industry, consumers and others can work together on practical solutions to improve indoor air without banishing smokers.