A Smoke-Free England

On the 1st July 2007, virtually all enclosed public places and workplaces in England became smoke-free zones. The new legislation has arisen from the Health Act 2006 and is divided into five areas of regulation.

• The Smokefree (Premises and Enforcement) Regulations 2006.
• The Smokefree (Exemptions and Vehicles) Regulations 2007.
• The Smokefree (Penalties and Discounted Amounts) Regulations 2007.
• The Smokefree (Vehicle operators and Penalty Notices) Regulations 2007.
• The Smokefree (Signs) Regulations 2007.

The new legislation has been brought in to act as a method of health protection as evidence shows that over 70% of smokers wish to quit. In England alone there are 7 million smokers in the workplace and most of these are young men and manual workers. The Department of Health estimates that a large proportion of disability is caused through smoking i.e. strokes or cancer, and lives will also be saved by helping to prevent heart disease.

The public health intervention draft due to be published in May guides health professionals and employers on how they can implement services and support to individuals with quitting smoking. This may include:

• Providing employees with information
• Providing incentives to employees with onsite smoking cessation services to enable employees to attend appointments during working hours
• Ease of access (travel) peer support and occupational health support
• Assisting employers with smooth implementation of smoke free legislation
• Reduced absenteeism
• Increased productivity (fewer breaks)
• Assisting small business with the release of staff

The http://www.smokefreeengland.co.uk/ website will provide you with a draft document of the new legislation and specific advice and information for businesses and employers with:

• Information on the display of 'no smoking signs'
• Raising awareness with customers/staff/visitors on whilst on premises and using vehicles
• Removal of ashtrays in smoke free areas
• Smoke free policy
• Support and Workplace Initiatives to help smokers quit
• Ensuring employees/visitors/customer’s know where they can smoke if they choose too
• A telephone advice line on compliance with the smoke free legislation and you can register your issues
• Non-compliance with smoke free policy

The National Clean Air Award is an initiative by the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation. It is the first UK wide scheme to reward employers who implement effective workplace no-smoking policies by giving them a prestigious nationally recognised award and by providing guidance to help get their policy right.

Other information:

• www.gasp.org.uk - Useful articles on a range of smoking-related issues.