Ban on smoking in restaurants

Parliament has given a bill banning smoking in cafés and restaurants a first reading by 115 votes to 43. The Smoking (Restaurants) Bill was introduced by Labour MP Gareth Thomas, who said that second-hand smoke was a health risk for all non-smokers. He said that the one concern about London’s high standard of restaurants was that there were no controls on smoking, unlike in other major centres such as New York, Ottawa, California and shortly in Dublin. The move was opposed by the Tories who called the bill a move to a ‘nanny state.’ The bill is reported to have no chance of becoming law due to lack of Parliamentary time.