ASH Wales calls for no exemption to smoking ban in Wales

Any exemptions to the smoking ban in Wales will destroy Wales’ credibility on public health and destabilise smoking legislation across the UK.

On October 16th 2012 AMs will be asked to water down Wales’ flagship public health legislation to exempt film and TV, following commercial pressure from the creative industries.
In England an exemption for filming was built in to its original legislation. But smoking is not allowed on production sets or film studios in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland as part legislation to protect all workers from the harmful effects of second hand smoke.

ASH Wales has warned the Welsh Government that if it joins England in creating an exemption it risks creating a domino effect in Scotland and Northern Ireland and will open the floodgates to further challenges to Wales’s smoking legislation if more industries put forward an ‘economic’ argument.

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