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Originally Posted by shillelagh

I went to dublin where the no smoking ban is in place and i liked it. If i wanted a ciggie i had to go outside either the front door or some of the pubs had designated areas outside with patio heaters and chairs and umbrellas. I found that i didnt smoke as much because i had to go outside.

Recently my daughter went to Ennis in southern Ireland, she was out with four of her cousins, she is a non-smoker and she told me yes it was very pleasant going into the pubs there all nice and clean and no smell of smoke.
However after they had been in the pub for quarter of an hour two of the group (smokers) said they were going out for a cig, the three non-smokers went out with them after they had all gone out together for the evening. Outside the pub was a bus shelter type building and they squeezed in there with the 50 other customers from the pub (smokers and non smokers), my daughter reckons this was far more horrendous for a non smoker than smoking pubs over here because all those people crammed into such a small space the atmosphere was thicker than the jelly on a pork pie!

So all this ban will do is force lots of people into smaller less comfortable spaces were they can share the concentrated secondary smoke.

I think its going to be a hard law to police, I mean fines of £50 if you're caught lighting up, are there going to be patrols in all pubs, dont think so!

They won't need to have patrols all they will do is throw the responsibility onto the landlord, if someone complains that he/she allows smokers into their pub, fines and no doubt bad marks against getting their licence renewed!