Page 4529 - Week 12 - Thursday, 15 October 2009
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smoke-free legislation by passing the Smoking (Prohibition in Enclosed Public Places) Act 2003.
Now, in this Eighth Assembly, the ACT will take the next important step and restrict smoking in outdoor eating and drinking areas and at underage functions. Members of our community deserve this legislation and many have written to me and other members of the government asking when smoking would be banned at outside tables for restaurants and cafes. It is not just about the unpleasantness of smoke drifting across from smokers; it is the concern about the health effects from being exposed to smoke. There is more than enough evidence that environmental tobacco smoke is harmful to the community.
In developing this bill, the ACT investigated the approaches of Queensland and Tasmania. It was decided that the Queensland approach offered a good model for the ACT to follow. Queensland banned smoking in outdoor eating or drinking places on 1 July 2006. As part of their legislation, Queensland allowed clubs and pubs to make a business decision to designate up to 50 per cent of their outdoor area for smoking.
The ACT is adopting Queensland’s approach with one supplement. A licensed premise that has an outdoor area that is off a gaming area is excluded from the calculation, but smoking may occur in the area. The government has been advised that these areas serve only as break-out areas for gambling smokers and not any other patrons. To ensure this exception is not taken advantage of, only those areas that are in existence or immediately being proposed to be created on 1 November 2009 may use this exception.
Licensees will be expected to actively manage designated outdoor smoking areas. The bill requires licensees to develop smoking management plans which are required to detail how exposure to smoke will be minimised, the training to staff and managing the prohibition on food and drink service to a designated outdoor smoking area.
I would encourage licensees to involve their staff in the development of the smoking management plan. Consulting with staff will mean that everyone is involved and aware of the responsibility to manage smoking.
In addition, licensees will be required to ensure that no persons under 18 years of age are in the designated outdoor smoking area. The government is concerned to ensure that children are not exposed to smoke, even in an outdoor area. There is no reason for children to be in a designated outdoor smoking area because food or drink service will not be allowed.
The bill does contain strict liability offences. The offences where strict liability has been included are identified in the bill and the explanatory statement. Strict liability has been employed in the bill to ensure the integrity of the regulatory scheme, particularly one that relates to such an important public health issue. Information will be produced by ACT Health to inform the community about the new smoking restrictions.
The ban on smoking at underage functions will reinforce the no smoking message to our young people. While functions at our schools are smoke free, other underage
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