Quote:
Originally Posted by The Flying Mouse
...As I say, i've always believed a bar should be allowed to have smoking/non smoking sections, but let's take the idea a step further...
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The only problem with this is that if you have a smoking and non smoking SECTION in a bar or restaurant, they're both smoking sections. I'm a non-smoker, and always have been. Before the ban, if I went out to a pub, I'd stay in the non smoking section, as very few of my friends (apart from the ones on here, that is) are smokers. I would still return home with a tight chest, stinking of cigarette smoke, because smoke is airborne, and it travels. You don't need to be in the same section for it to affect you. The best solution for me is to ban smoking altogether, since the nation would be much healthier, but it's not going to happen, is it?
Quote:
Originally Posted by The Flying Mouse
 Tax collected per year for tobacco = 8 Billion pounds.
Money spent per year on tobacco related illnessess = 3 Billion pounds.
The 5 Billion pounds is what is left over AFTER you've accounted for smoking related illness Deb. |
As others have said, there are figures that are directly related to the smokers, but I'm sure there are other factors to take into consideration. As a hypnotherapist, I've had clients come for smoking cessation. One lady in particular wanted to have an elective operation, and was told in no uncertain terms by her surgeon that he wouldn't operate if she was still smoking. Not because he was being awkward, but because smoking extends healing and recovery times. That means the patient is under the care of the surgeon/GP/district nurse/clinic nurse/whoever for longer, which costs money, and means someone else has to wait longer to be treated. It also means they need more dressings/prescriptions, as they take longer to recover, and although the majority of people pay for their prescriptions, in a lot of cases the actual cost of the drugs or dressings is subsidised by the NHS, so that's more money.
I believe we should ALL have the right to choose, and my choice is not to smoke, or to go to places where I'll have someone else doing it in my face. Neil, you say that landlords should be allowed to choose - what if all the pubs where I live choose to serve smokers? That takes away MY choice, is that then fair?
Incidentally, I'd like to jump on the stop standing in doorways bandwagon too, it does sort of defeat the object of having a smoking ban if you have to walk through a cloud of smoke to get into or out of your smoke free environment
