EARLIER STORIES

Global
Study confirms passive smoking risks
The greater your exposure to passive smoking at work, the greater your risk of lung cancer, a major study has found. Those exposed to smoke in the workplace had an increased lung cancer risk of 13 per cent. For those exposed for more than 21 years, the risk jumped to 25 per cent, the study found.
Risks 137, 20 December 2003

BRITAIN
Smoke signals bad for UK, good for NZ
More than half of UK non-smoking employees are being exposed to tobacco smoke in the workplace, according to research. Campaign group SmokeFree London said around eight million non-smokers (51 per cent), many working in bars and restaurants, were exposed to smoke in the workplace. The New Zealand parliament, meanwhile, has passed legislation that will require all its workplaces, including pubs and clubs, to be smoke-free within 12 months.
Risks 135, 6 December 2003

BRITAIN
Medical experts call for public smoking ban
The Royal College of Physicians and other leading medical colleges have called for a ban on smoking in public places. In a letter to The Times they said there was now sufficient evidence to prove the dangers of passive smoking but that self-regulation in bars and restaurants has failed to protect the majority of staff or customers.
Risks 134, 29 November 2003

BRITAIN
Reid stubs out hopes of smoking ban in public
Plans for a legally enforceable smoking ban in public places are to be abandoned by the government. A report in The Observer says health secretary John Reid has told colleagues that he favours voluntary codes by employers, pub owners and restaurants rather than resorting to legal bans.
Risks 133, 22 November 2003

AUSTRALIA
Pubs to ban smoking
Smoking in pubs and clubs is to be phased out in New South Wales. The state government has establishing a working party, to include representatives from pubs and clubs, the NSW Cancer Institute and relevant government officials, to work out the details.
Risks 128, 18 October 2003

BRITAIN
Government criticised for workplace smoke stance
Calls for legal protection from passive smoke risks at work are being backed by safety and medical organisations. The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) has called on the government to demonstrate its commitment to public health by abandoning its support for a voluntary approach, a call echoed by doctors' organisation BMA in Scotland.
Risks 125, 27 September 2003

EUROPE
Ban on smoking at work is likely
A complete ban on smoking in the workplace could be a step closer after a top European official announced plans for new European Union-wide measures on passive smoking. European Commissioner for health and consumer protection David Byrnes said there was scope to act on the hazards at the workplace under existing EU-wide safety laws.
Risks 123, 13 September 2003

AUSTRALIA
Tobacco giant pays asbestos price
Tobacco multinational Philip Morris has settled a lawsuit with a Melbourne employee battling lung cancer. The substantial out-of-court payout to Lionel Newman, 62, a heavy smoker who was also exposed to asbestos dust - however, the company broke with the usual legal ruse of trying to blame smoking as contributory negligence.
Risks 122, 6 September 2003

GLOBAL
Warning over heart risk from passive smoking
Being exposed to even a small amount of second-hand tobacco smoke may increase your chances of developing heart disease, according to a new study. It found people who are exposed to smoke just a few times a week at home or at work could see their risk rise by 15 per cent in five years or double over 30 years.
Risks 122, 6 September 2003

BRITAIN
Pizza Hut bans smoking
Restaurant chain Pizza Hut has introduced a smoking ban in all its UK restaurants. The company said it hoped the move would protect customers and staff at its 500 branches from the dangers of passive smoking.
Risks 120, 23 August 2003

BRITAIN
Passive smoking is a drag for musicians
The Musicians’ Union (MU) says passive smoking is a drag for musicians and is backing the union campaign for protection of workers from other people’s smoke. An MU motion to TUC’s September Congress calls on TUC to urge the Health and Safety Executive to produce the long-awaited code of practice on passive smoking.
Risks 120, 23 August 2003

BRITAIN
Casino worker receives asthma payout
A GMB member who claimed he developed asthma because of passive smoking at work has won his battle for compensation. Michael Dunn was reportedly paid up to £50,000 in an out-of-court settlement by Napoleon's Casino in Leicester Square, central London.
Risks 119, 16 August 2003

BRITAIN
HSC to blame for deadly smoking inaction
The Health and Safety Commission is to blame for bar, restaurant and other workers not having protection from potentially deadly exposures to tobacco smoke. The Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS) said current legislation to protect people from passive smoking is too vague and called on HSC to quit stalling and establish a code of practice to tighten safeguards.
Risks 116, 26 July 2003

BRITAIN
Government’s top doc backs work smoking ban campaign
The UK government’s top public health adviser has said introducing smoking bans in public places including bars is "the only way" to successfully tackle the health risks from second-hand smoke. The State of Public Health, the annual report of government Chief Medical Officer Sir Liam Donaldson, recommends "very serious consideration should be given to introducing a ban on smoking in public places soon." It adds: "All employers should plan to introduce smoke-free workplaces." It says bar workers, waitresses and waiters are "particularly vulnerable" as the hospitality industry has been "painfully slow" to act, adding: "Going smoke-free also represents an opportunity for pubs, bars and restaurants to attract new customers; as well as fully protecting the health of their employees."
Risks 113, 5 July 2003

AUSTRALIA
No smoking law must go further
Hospitality workers in Tasmania have welcomed a new state government report recommending a total ban on smoking in Tasmanian bars and gaming areas (casinos and arcades).
Risks 112, 28 June 2003

CANADA
No-smoking law beneficial, study shows
Canada's first bylaw banning smoking in public places has not had the negative social or economic impact predicted by opponents, a study has found.
Risks 112, 28 June 2003

BRITAIN
"Pathetic" campaign is failing to tackle pub smoke risks
Workplace smoking ban campaigners say the government must act now and legislate to stop workplace exposures to passive smoking after a new report found less than half the country’s pubs and bars are complying with a voluntary code - and half of those that are complying still allow smoking throughout the premises.
ASH news release • Risks 108, 31 May 2003

BRITAIN
Tories call for action on workplace smoking
The shadow health secretary Dr Liam Fox has joined the TUC and health campaigners in calling on the government to protect employees from cigarette smoke in the workplace. An Early Day Motion ahead of the 31 May World No Smoking Day, which has support from Labour as well as opposition MPs, say "everyone should be able to work in a smoke-free environment."
Risks 107, 24 May 2003

GLOBAL
Tobacco-funded research on passive smoking slammed
Campaigners, medical experts and unions have attacked a tobacco industry backed study which concluded that passive smoking might not increase the risk of heart disease and lung cancer by as much as has been claimed. The study, which is described as "flawed" and which ignores "overwhelming evidence that passive smoking kills" was published in the British Medical Journal a week after Hazards revealed that tobacco industry-backed studies are noteworthy only because of the consistency with which they declare passive smoking no problem.
Risks 106, 17 May 2003

BRITAIN
Smoking bans are healthy for business and workers, says TUC
Smoking bans in pubs and cafes would protect the health of UK hospitality workers and result in increased profits for landlords and restaurant owners, according to a story in the latest edition of the TUC-backed magazine, Hazards.
Risks 105, 10 May 2003 • TUC news release, 10 May 2003

BRITAIN
ASH says ban work smoking now
Anti-smoking group Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) has told Health Minister Alan Milburn that the government's hope that it can still make "fast and substantial progress in partnership with the industry" on smoking bans is misguided.
ASH news release, 2 May 2003

USA
Killing linked to NY smoking ban
A nightclub bouncer in New York was stabbed to death in an incident police believe may be linked to the city's new ban on smoking in bars. Dana Blake, 32, was attacked after ordering two men at the trendy Guernica club in East Village, Manhattan, to put out their cigarettes.
Risks 102, 19 April 2003

AUSTRALIA
Revenge of the masked man
Australian barman Steven Kane was sacked by the Moama Bowling Club for insisting on wearing a respirator to work to protecting from second hand smoke. Mr Kane, who had worked at the club for 11 years, said an 18-month smoke-free period which ended in March made a massive difference to his health.
Risks 102, 19 April 2003

BRITAIN
Smoking ban passes first test
A Labour MP’s bill to secure a ban on smoking in cafes and restaurants has passed its first Commons hurdle. Gareth Thomas's Smoking (Restaurants) Bill will prevent people from lighting up in any premises that sell food.
Risks 102, 19 April 2003

BRITAIN
Passive smoking at work kills three people every day
New research showing 1,200 people in the UK die each year due to passive smoking at work makes an unanswerable case for urgent legal controls on workplace smoking, the TUC has said. A killer on the loose says around 900 office workers, 165 bar workers and 145 manufacturing workers die each year in the UK as a direct result of breathing in other people's tobacco smoke at work.
Risks 101, 12 April 2003 • A killer on the loose [pdf]

BRITAIN
Curb public smoking in Scotland, says expert
An internationally renowned academic is expected to attack Scotland's record on smoking in public places. Professor Stanton Glantz, of the University of California in San Francisco, is visiting Scotland to show what lessons can be learned from the successful smoking restrictions introduced in parts of America.
Risks 101, 12 April 2003

BRITAIN
Call for restaurant smoking ban
Lighting up in cafes and restaurants across the UK should be outlawed to reduce the numbers of deaths from passive smoking, according to an MP. Gareth Thomas says he believes a strict ban on smoking will also make the practice less socially acceptable and provide a further incentive to people to stub out the habit. His Smoking (Restaurants) Bill has the backing of 70 MPs, plus anti-tobacco groups ASH and SmokeFree London.
Risks 101, 12 April 2003

USA
Smoking bans good for smokers too, says expert
New York’s no-nonsense no-smoking law, which took effect on 23 March, brings benefits to non-smokers and smokers alike, a leading cancer specialist has said.
Risks 99, 29 March 2003

AUSTRALIA
Oz campaigners wants the lungs of the Irish
Australia’s Irish pubs and clubs were urged to follow Ireland’s lead on St Patrick’s Day, 17 March, and declare their venues smoke free. Ireland's political leaders have agreed on legislation which will see all workplaces smoke free including pubs and bars by the end of the year.
Risks 98, 22 March 2003 • SmokeFree ‘03

NEW ZEALAND
Smoking ban good for hospitality workers' health
A smoking ban in bars, casinos and restaurants would protect hospitality industry workers from proven harm, according to a New Zealand union. The comment from the Service and Food Workers’ Union (SFWU) came as a parliamentary health select committee report admitted ventilation would not provide enough protection for employees from second-hand smoke, concluding a total ban was justified.
Risks 98, 22 March 2003

AUSTRALIA
Oz campaigners wants the lungs of the Irish
Australia’s Irish pubs and clubs were urged to follow Ireland’s lead on St Patrick’s Day, 17 March, and declare their venues smoke free. Ireland's political leaders have agreed on legislation which will see all workplaces smoke free including pubs and bars by the end of the year.
Risks 98, 22 March 2003 • SmokeFree ‘03

BRITAIN
Evidence "suppressed" on benefits of smoking ban
Evidence that thousands of lives could be saved each year by outlawing smoking at work has been suppressed by the government because it is listening too closely to hospitality industry lobbyists, who claim it would be too expensive. An unpublished study says up to 2,340 lives a year could be saved by outlawing workplace smoking, with total savings to government and business of £21bn.
Risks 98, 22 March 2003

BRITAIN
Groups repeat call for smoking curbs at work
The government is facing renewed calls from union, public health, medical and campaign groups to stamp out passive smoking at work.
Risks 97, 15 March 2003

GLOBAL
Smoking bans do not damage pub trade
Smoking bans in restaurants and bars do not lead to a loss of revenue or jobs, and may even improve business, according to research.
Risks 95, 1 March 2003

BRITAIN
Don't choke on the smoke!
Pressure on the UK government to regulate smoking in the workplace will be stepped up in April when the TUC, the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) and Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) hold a "Don't choke on the smoke" campaign conference. The three organisations will be calling on the government to adopt the long-delayed Approved Code of Practice (ACoP) on passive smoking at work.
Risks 93, 15 February 2003

BRITAIN
UNISON opposes over-reaction on smoking breaks
Twenty thousand Liverpool council workers have been warned they could lose their jobs for taking unofficial cigarette breaks. An email from chief executive David Henshaw warns all staff that sneaking away for a cigarette could constitute gross misconduct.
Risks 93, 15 February 2003

IRELAND
Union welcomes workplace smoking ban
Ireland is to introduce a ban on smoking at work. Minister for Health, Micheal Martin announced the move at the launch of a report on the ill-effects of passive smoking in the workplace. He also gave details of plans to bring forward tough new anti-tobacco regulations to provide for an outright ban on smoking in all workplaces, to take effect January 2004.
Risks 91, 1 February 2003

AUSTRALIA
ABC bans smoking within 10m of work
Australian broadcaster ABC has introduced a strict no-smoking policy at all its workplaces, stipulating that staff who want to smoke must do so at least 10 metres from the entrances to ABC sites.
Risks 89, 18 January 2003

BRITAIN
Workplace concern over passive smoking cancer risk
A group of UK charities has launched a campaign to reduce workers' exposure to secondhand smoke. A study commissioned by the groups found that more than 12 million UK workers - over half the workforce - are concerned about the risk of developing lung cancer due to passive smoking at work. Over a quarter were "very concerned."
Risks 89, 18 January 2003

AUSTRALIA
Study finds smokers would welcome ban in pubs
About a quarter of smokers who go to nightclubs, pubs and clubs would quit smoking if was banned inside the venues, a study has found. The Australian study, published in the December 2002 issue of the journal Tobacco Control, reveals at least seven out of 10 so-called social smokers binge smoke during a night out.
Risks 87, 4 January 2002