Comments on: Madrid makes its own rules – even at the cost of our health?

By: Maarten

Maarten — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 08:49:42 +0000

A key component the drive to remove smoking from public areas, such as the workplace, is the attitude of the courts when employers are sued by workers (remember asbestos?).

The legal profession could speed the process up by acting on behalf of affected workers, and if necessary, taking the case to the European Court of Human Rights.

The sooner the better!

By: Patrick

Patrick — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 11:17:36 +0000

As I see, Germany has not learned from the mistakes Spain has made before. Since this year many federal states of Germany have implemented a law that forbids smoking in restaurants and bars. The federal state of Bavaria implemented this law starting from January and claimed it to be the most harsh one within Germany, even banning the smokers out off the beer tents. Now the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) – witch has in Bavaria a absolute majority (the only federal state with one) – fears to loose this. So it starts now to win back the voters that smoke by loosening the law more and more. The results: The Oktober Fest in Munich won’t be smoke free, other folk festivals follow, restaurants can perhaps separate between smoking and non-smoking areas/rooms. Restaurants that are private clubs can allow the smoking. So what was all the talking about health, saving children and elderly peolple for?

By: Gill

Gill — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 20:00:58 +0000

It varies; London Liverpool Street has long been non-smoking and the rule is observed for the most part.

By: Ben

Ben — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 14:49:57 +0000

I’m amazed to hear you can still smoke in stations in the UK!

By: Alex

Alex — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 13:54:48 +0000

Very interesting topic. I was surprised to see people smoking in the airports in Spain and in ticket desks in train stations in France despite audible prohibitions and visual aids. This was nothing compared to Cyprus, where you find people smoking everywhere.. it was particularly annoying in restaurants — it seems the people are oblivious to the effect it has on the people around them.

I am waiting for King’s Cross station to ban smoking on the platforms and waiting areas. Each morning I am chocked as I try to make my way through the cloud of early morning nicotine addicts.

By: Patty

Patty — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 21:40:02 +0000

I enjoyed reading your comments and sicussion. I live in an area where smoking is not allowed and I love it. When I am now put into a situation where I am breathing smoke I am forced for my own preservation to move. I would only think that soon the non-smokers in Madrid will voice their opinions and perhaps the law will get reversed again.

By: Jon Hundt

Jon Hundt — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 19:31:34 +0000

Ben – that is the simple truth. I love a good discussion about freedom and politics, but in the end common sense prevails. If smokers had realized all along that their smoke was annoying and dangerous to their friends, family, and colleagues they would have gone outside to smoke, and no law would have been needed.

I wonder why it’s so hard (sometimes) for people to understand simple things…

By: Ben

Ben — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 10:11:20 +0000

I’d be very interested to know the results of a poll on this yes, but in the end I would still make the smokers go and smoke in the street. It wouldn’t kill them, whereas leaving them fogging up work places doesn’t do anyone else any good.

By: Jon Hundt

Jon Hundt — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 18:28:33 +0000

Ben, wouldn’t it be interesting to do a poll of the people involved? Of course that’s far too difficult to arrange, but it’s interesting to speculate on the results. ONLY the people who work in the places in question – NOT everyone in the city.

I’m inspired to sugges this because I have noticed that Holland in particular (where I now live) and Europe in general both seem to be adverse to actually asking the people’s opinion. There seems to be a feeling that this only leads to anarchy. In Holland the EU Constitution was apparently the first actual popular referendum in 150 years. And – the political establishment was shocked by the results, because they apparently don’t have a clue what the population really thinks. And this is supposed to be a representative democracy.

In the US (where I come from) everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, can be put to a direct vote of the population. This can be almost as frustrating as the European non-vote option, but at least the people get a chance to vote on things that affect them directly.

Here in Holland, we did not even get a chance to vote on discarding the 700-year-old currency and adopting the Euro. In fact, there was never a vote on whether to become a member-state of the EEC.

By: Ben

Ben — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 17:13:53 +0000

I agree that there is a danger of the ‘nanny state’ taking over too many civil liberties, but in this case it really seems that the PP is only doing this to piss off the PSOE. I don’t care about that, they can piss each other off as much as they want with the reversal of other measures, but the consensus when the original law came out was that banning smoking in the work place was a good idea. Now more people will be passive smoking again, and there is no doubt that that is bad for the health. I have always loved the freedom to do things in Spain that are strangled into oblivion in other countries like the UK, but this just seems plain stupid.