Plans to ban smoking outside pubs and clubs in the UK could be blocked

nme.com:

make it illegal for anyone born in 2009 or later to buy tobacco products in the UK.Starmer initially introduced ideas of the outdoor smoking ban as a measure that would improve public health and reduce the strain on the National Health Service and the taxpayer.

Currently, 80,000 people die every year in the UK as a result of smoking.However, the proposal has been controversial, with figures in the hospitality industry saying it will worsen the current crisis facing pubs, clubs and music venues.The trade body UKHospitality said the ban threatens “serious economic harm to hospitality venues”, while the British Beer and Pub Association said the plan was “deeply concerning and difficult to understand” and “yet another blow to the viability of our nation’s vital community assets”.Now, there are reports that No 10 officials are blocking the ban, with some deeming it “an unserious” policy as “the evidence is too thin” to prove a significant health risk to non-smokers, per the Guardian.The paper reports that key figures within Downing Street are urging Starmer to ditch the ban, including Lucy Powell, the leader of the house, and Morgan McSweeney, the prime minister’s chief of staff.Some MPs are reportedly “spooked” at the prospect of damage to the hospitality industry, however Starmer has previously refused to rule it out.It follows reports that 37 per cent of all clubs across the country have permanently shut since March 2020 – an average of three clubs a week and 150 per year.