Terry Streeter wrote: > Smoking is to be banned on boats and ships in British > waters, the Government said. > Douglas Alexander, the Transport Secretary, said that he > plans to extend the ban on smoking in public places to the > nation's waterways. > Smoking in enclosed workplaces, public places and vehicles on > land will be banned from July 1. > In a written statement to MPs, Mr Alexander said: "I now > intend to introduce similar provisions to provide protection > from second-hand smoke for people on vessels at sea and on > inland waterways." > Sailors and passengers will still be allowed to smoke in > their cabins. Mr Alexander said that the ban would be > enforced by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. Flouting it > would lead to similar penalties to those for smoking on dry land. > > I can't quite see how they are going to enforce this on the canals. > They aren't going to pay for smoking wardens to stand at > every lock, and I don't think the technology is there yet for > a "Fag Camera" to take your picture as you pass it. Another > piece of unenforceable nonsense from our caring sharing government.
The government has just announced a public consultation on the proposals. The consultation paper is on the DfT website at <http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/open/smokingonvessels/smoking>. In light of comments made by others it is worth noting that the Executive Summary of the consultation document states: "It is proposed that the regulations will apply to all vessels, both passenger and non-passenger ships including fishing vessels, so long as they come within the scope of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 (MSA) and are operating within the 12-mile UK territorial limit (except for ships transiting UK territorial seas and not calling at a UK port)." So non-British ships just passing through the English Channel will not be affected. "It is not proposed to extend the smoke free provisions to private vessels which are not carrying any fare paying passengers or any employed crew onboard." So again it won't affect most on this list. It also asks: "Please also comment on any possible unintended consequences of these proposals, as well as any practical enforcement or implementation issues." So there is an opportunity to flag any particular concerns about the application of these regulations to canal boats. There is a FAQ page which includes the following: "Q - Will the ban extend to pleasure craft? A - The smoke free provisions will not apply to private vessels such as yachts, motor cruisers, and small private fishing vessels, unless they are carrying at least one paying passenger, or are operating with crew employed under a contract. David Mack
