Smoking ban may seriously damage your social life
It is a bit silly to argue that smoking is in any way beneficial to your health. The statistics about smoking and death are not for the light hearted; rather, the heart diseased. According to the World Health Organisation, half of all long term smokers will die from a smoking related illness. Passive smoking apparently also kills. Doom all round • awesome. On 15th February 2006, the House of Commons voted to ban smoking in all enclosed public places.
An exemption for private member’s clubs was scrapped after the initial vote passed with the exemption. The government hopes to have the ban in place by the summer of 2007. Cancer Research UK hailed the ban as the biggest step forward in public health for half a century. Study after study bombards the population with information about the perils of smoking.
It would be fallacious to argue that this ban will not have a positive effect on the overall health of the country for both smokers and non-smokers. One in four people smoke across England according to official figures, and this statistic rises at university, as 20-24 year-olds are more likely to smoke then the rest of the population. These statistics are certainly supported in Oxford where students seem to smoke for breakfast.
It is ironic considering we are apparently the intellectual elite of the country, yet still enjoy sucking away on the occasional cancer straw. Health issues aside, the smoking ban is viewed by its opponents as an infringement on civil liberties. Shouldn’t people have the right to smoke? Indeed, is this not an example of Britain rapidly turning into a nanny state? There aren’t any easy answers.
One must also consider how the effect will have a profound impact on the pub and hospitality industry, in both Oxford and the whole of England. Is cleaner air worth the gradual gentrification of the pub into a bland family and food centered establishment? Ali Dunn, the manager of the King’s Arms in Oxford, is personally involved in both sides of this issue as a smoker who manages a pub: “From a personal point of view as a smoker, I think it should be 50/50.
I think there should be a non-smoking and a smoking section. From a professional point of view, I’m all for it.” Dunn is quick to point out that when visiting clubs and bars in Manhattan over the summer, he was impressed with the effects of the smoking ban. Smoking has been banned in New York’s 20,000 restaurants, bars, and clubs since March 2003. “It smelled so clean, and I’m saying this as a smoker,” Dunn says wistfully.
When asked what the effects of the ban were likely to be on other pubs in Oxford, Dunn admits, “Smaller pubs will go out of business.” Smoking has already been prohibited at the bar counter, and Dunn acknowledges that people still react badly when employees asks patrons not to smoke at the bar. Will enforcing the ban be hard when it goes from merely the counter to the entirety of the bar? “I think it will be hard to enforce.
It’s going to be up to the managers to enforce it,” Dunn says firmly. Although the KA is not planning on voluntarily banning smoking before it becomes the law, other pubs are planning to do so before hand. The large national chain, JD Wetherspoon, is planning to banning smoking in all of its pubs by May 2006. The Liberal Democrat Spokesman for this legislation, Steve Webb MP, emphasises the negative consequences for hospitality workers who spend most of their day in the existing smoky furor.
The people that the smoking ban will help most according to Webb are people who work in the hospitality industry: “An excellent example is Roy Castle, who never smoked, but died of lung cancer from performing in smoky pubs and clubs.” But will the ban actually help people quit smoking? This, surely is the real issue. Webb seems to think that it should. “The evidence is that it will. The most diffi cult time to quit is when you are out socially, with friends at the pub.
When asked how he would respond to allegations and polling that suggest people want a restriction, rather than an outright ban on smoking, Webb makes the point that it depends on what question you ask. “I think that the answer you get tends to depend on whether you ask if it is fair that people who work in pubs are exposed to smoke. People say no. Then, if you ask should people be free to light up in separate rooms, people say yes.
He goes on to say that this ban is primarily about looking after a minority. I inquire whether this is an example of infringement on civil liberties. Is this not an example of the government poking its nose where it shouldn’t? Webb gently sidesteps. “Obviously not, no. This is about health and safety, not whether I like smoky places.” JAMES COGLAN Finally, I ask if smoking has been banned in the House of Commons bar. Funnily enough, it hasn’t.
Webb reassures me that this is only because the House of Commons is situated in the Royal Palace, and the rules that apply to other buildings, don’t apply to establishments situated in royal buildings. Well, quite. Closer to home, Dr. Evan Harris, MP for West Oxford and Abingdon, is very keen on the smoking ban.
He does not think it will adversely affect pubs in Oxford, as the ban will outlaw smoking in every pub: “The evidence is that there is no loss of trade if there is a level playing field.” When asked how the ban would impact his constituency, Harris blandly says, “I think there will be more smoke free environments for people to work in.
He initially dismisses the notion of this legislation as an example of the government intruding into people’s personal lives: “It was a free vote by Parliament.” However, later in the interview he responds to allegations of civil liberty infringement by saying, “I am very reluctant generally to restrict civil liberties, but I believe there should be the freedom to work in a hazard free environment.
This may be a fair point, but it is worth pointing out that some individuals who work in the hospitality and pub industry do smoke. Do they not have the right to work in an enjoyable environment? Darren Kent, who has managed The Turf Tavern for four and a half years, is surprisingly upbeat about the smoking ban. “It’s going to be all good because we’re going to develop the gardens.
Indeed, The Turf is planning on sinking 30,000 pounds into expanding and developing both the back and side gardens into separate smoking and nonsmoking gardens, with nicer furniture and roof coverings. Kent acknowledges that The Turf is extremely fortunate in having outside space to develop: “It’s going to be a sad day for pubs without outside gardens. Small pubs in Oxford will close.” The Turf, on the other hand is looking forward to the smoking ban.
Kent goes on to say that this ban indicates a general shift in the pub industry: “Pubs were originally built for men, working class men, to socialise after work. The entire ethos of the pub has gone out the window. People are being pushed away by restrictions, like the smoking ban. Pubs are becoming much more family friendly.” According to Kent, “Frequent visitors to the pub are in decline. Going to the pub is becoming an event, not a daily ritual.
Mark Hastings, director of communications for the British Beer & Pub Association, supports Kent’s claims of a general drift in a different direction for the pub industry: “We are pleased that MPs have ensured a level playing field for all, with no exemption for private members’ clubs. “Such clubs are in direct competition with pubs, and they are not private places. They sell 1.5 billion pints of beer a year, and their thousands of employees are subject to the same health and safety at work regulations as pub industry staff. Now the real hard work begins, preparing our customers and pubs for this cultural shift. A combination of the right timetable and light touch regulation will be critical factors in helping us manage this change smoothly.
From a purely self centered standpoint, how will this ban affect Oxford college bars and JCRs individually? Some colleges, such as Queens, are currently debating whether or not to ban smoking in the whole of the college. Other colleges seem to exemplify the fallacy in banning smoking in half of a space; for example, Worcester College JCR has banned smoking in the bar, but as the bar is not run by the JCR and the barman smokes, it is banned in only one part of the small underground bar.
The ban has made a negligible difference. Similarly, if one winds down the Iffley Road for about an hour there is a proud little PPH called Greyfriars which has recently banned smoking from one half of the JCR. However, as people smoke in the doorway which links the rooms, the ban is not particularly effective. Christ Church banned smoking from one half of the bar in Hilary 2005, although it is worth noting that banning smokers from around the bar only passed with one vote.
Other colleges have recently banned smoking from the entirety of their bars. St Peter’s and Keble are now completely non-smoking. Mansfield College has also banned smoking, but this is due more to the fire last year than a commitment to student health. Balliol has recently passed a resolution on 19th February to ban smoking in all areas of the JCR. As a result, smoking will now be banned in the JCR as well as the pool room in the bar, and the bar area itself where the staff are working.
In essence, many colleges are making the ban redundant as college JCRs seem keen to ban smoking before it becomes necessary to do so. The smoking ban will change Britain, both culturally and health wise. It would be ridiculous to argue that the ban is not a substantial step forward for our lungs, but as many small pubs look to close, many people bemoan the desecration of one of the hallmarks of British identity.
Would not the nauseatingly charming character of Oxford significantly change if smaller pubs such as The White Horse or The Bear, were forced to close due to the smoking ban? In addition, would you actually want to go to a pub where eleven year olds quarrel over their portion of pudding while family friendly music is piped through the soothing terracotta walls? The ban on smoking is much more than merely banning smoke from enclosed; it is a push towards a healthier Britain, whether the population likes it or not. It won’t be pretty, regardless of the side you are on.
2nd Mar 2006