Health Groups Gunning To Axe Smoking In All Beer Gardens Across VIC

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Published

April 5, 2016

If a bunch of health organisations have their way, smoking would be outlawed in every outdoor area of every pub and café across Victoria.

The State Government already has plans in place to outlaw smoking in any outdoor area that serves food from August 2017 on.

But according to a coalition of 15 organisations, including the Australian Medical Association, the Cancer Council of Victoria, and the Hospitality Workers Union, the proposed laws could create kind of an inverse implementation that would result in dining being effectively outlawed in outdoor areas.

The groups state that the practical solution for pubs and cafes would be to simply limit food service to indoor areas, and “promote alcohol consumption without food in outdoor areas where smoking is allowed.”

The counter-proposal being floated by the group would effectively see smoking completely outlawed in all areas of a pub, including beer gardens and rooftops.

Tony Bartone, the President of AMA Victoria, stated that the laws needed to do more to protect the health of hospitality workers.

“This is not just about smokers. Tobacco laws have huge implications for hospitality workers’ health, as they spend a significant portion of their shift serving patrons and clearing empty glasses in smoke-filled areas.”

The coalition proposes that Victoria adopt stricter laws, similar to the ones in place in Queensland, where smoking is totally outlawed in outdoor dining areas (however, pubs can designate specific areas of their outdoor drinking areas for smoking).

The proposal is being met with strong opposition from business owners and certain unions. Restaurant and Caterers Association chief exec John Hart totally rejected the health concerns of the AMA, stating instead that workers were actually more at-risk from passing traffic than they were from outdoor smokers.

“The staff are actually exposed to more negative impacts by working outdoors on the footpath from car exhaust and other pollution than they are from tobacco smoke. I would challenge them to demonstrate how that is the case. There is no evidence of that and never has been.”

“We’ve supported a constructive ban on smoking in outdoor dining areas because that’s what some of the patrons want, but it’s got nothing to do with negative health impacts on either the customers outside, nor the staff outside.”

The state Health Minister’s office confirmed that the department has no current plans to review the incoming legislation, and no plans to extend them.

Source: The Age.

Photo: Newscast/Getty.