The smoking ban has now come into effect in many establishments and you can see a group of smokers puffing outside on every street corner. It still looks nice now, but imagine what these people will look like when it freezes outside again. Many establishments do not have the space or financial resources to create an indoor smoking area. And even more annoying, the smoking ban applies in more and more places and threatens to get out of hand! What do they actually want?
The voice of the Netherlands
A smoking ban in the catering industry?
- Is a ridiculous idea 48%
- Am I not for or against 3%
- Is a good idea 37%
- In restaurants, largely in cafes 12%
Number of votes: 3410
How do countries participate?
Netherlands: In the Netherlands, the right to a smoke-free workplace has been in force since January 1, 2004. The exceptions with regard to the catering industry will expire as of July 1, 2008. Smoking will then only be permitted in closed areas in the catering industry.
Portugal: The smoking ban applies to workplaces and public spaces. Smoking on public transport and in taxis is only allowed if the journey takes longer than one hour.
England: A smoking ban came into effect in England on July 1, 2007. Smoking is no longer allowed in closed public buildings.
Ireland : This country introduced a smoking ban in all workplaces, including pubs and catering establishments, in March 2004.
Norway: Following Ireland’s lead, Norway introduced a smoking ban in catering establishments in June 2004.
Spain: Since January 1, 2006, smoking is no longer allowed in workplaces. An exception has also been made here for the catering industry.
Turkey: Turkey has a smoking ban in closed office spaces, shopping centers and in public services as of May 19, 2008. Smoking is also no longer allowed in sports stadiums and on playgrounds . The term ,closed spaces, also includes places that are covered only with sun protection. The ban will only apply to restaurants and bars from June 2009.
Denmark: A smoking ban came into effect in Denmark on 15 August 2007 . Only entertainment venues that are smaller than one hundred square meters are left out of harm’s way. Initially, the ban was to take effect on April 1, but that date was postponed to give entrepreneurs more room to adapt to the new law.
Malta: Since September 2004, smoking is no longer allowed in public places, including catering establishments.
Scotland: From Sunday 26 March 2006, smoking will no longer be permitted in public places, including catering establishments.
Finland: Smoking has been virtually banned in restaurants and cafes in Finland since June 1, 2007. Smoking has been prohibited in other places where people work, in public buildings and on public transport since 2000.
Germany: In eight of the sixteen German states, a smoking ban will apply in the catering industry from 1 January 2008. In Lower Saxony, Baden-Württemberg and Hesse, smoking was no longer allowed in cafes and restaurants, except in separate smoking areas. Belgium: From January 1, 2007
, smoking in restaurants is only allowed in closed areas. Smoking is still allowed in cafes. From 1 September 2008, a total smoking ban will also apply in all Flemish schools.
Controls
Unfortunately, you can no longer ignore it and everyone is aware of it. The smoking ban in catering establishments has been introduced and from 1 July 2008 smoking is no longer allowed in catering establishments. The ban has already been implemented in Sweden, Ireland, Norway, Malta, Italy, Scotland, England, Belgium, Spain and France. Inspections are carried out everywhere, although the rules differ slightly from country to country. More than 1,800 checks have now been carried out in the past three weeks, according to the Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (VWA). This has shown that approximately 96% of all entrepreneurs comply with the ban. About 50 warnings were still issued. Fines are not yet being imposed, to give entrepreneurs the opportunity to adjust the situation. According to the VWA, the mood at most inspections was not very friendly, but after all, they are just doing their job.
Last weekend, a number of warnings were also given to organizations that call themselves smokers’ associations or smokers’ churches. By calling themselves that, they tried to get out of the ban, but they too must adhere to the ban , just like student associations, youth centers, etc., which thought they did not have to adhere to it.
The Netherlands has 65,000 catering establishments and 2,000 inspectors have now been appointed to monitor these establishments. The companies that have now been warned will be checked again within a short time.
The smoking ban is expanding
We were no longer allowed to smoke at work, so we left our sandwich and coffee during the break to run outside for that much-needed cigarette. We have now become used to the fact that indoor smoking is no longer allowed at work unless there is a smoking area available. In the beginning it was very annoying and the incentive to do our work even disappeared. Normally we would work with the occasional cigarette in our mouth, while we could continue working. Now we have to leave work to go outside (or to the smoking area), if this is already allowed outside the breaks and if we feel like having a cigarette during work and we are not allowed, this irritates us so much that we move slower and less motivated work.
In some workplaces, non-smokers even find themselves in a cubicle full of smoke, because the best and friendliest colleagues simply smoke. It was therefore a brilliant idea to ventilate the smoking area as poorly as possible, so that smokers could no longer look at the suffocating cigarette smoke around them, get nauseous from it and then throw their butts in the damn corner. Not so! It is expected that chewing tobacco will become a new trend and the number of open-air catering establishments will also grow significantly.
Ban in the catering industry
It is of course understandable that non-smokers cannot really enjoy their meal if they are exposed to cigarette smoke. But is it really necessary to send smokers outside in all weather conditions? The nicest local pubs are so cozy because they are so small and cozy. There is no room to build a smoking shelter and so the owners are forced to send out their loyal customers, who always leave such a good tip. Rain, wind, snow or ice, it doesn’t matter. Out with that business! In fact, the owners must also stand outside themselves. They are evicted from their own tent. The tent that is completely theirs, which they have worked so hard for and which is actually a second home. Not all catering owners are happy with this ban. Why not just a ban in restaurants and the like? Why not just a ban where people eat? Most visitors smoke in pubs while enjoying a beer or a soft drink. The bars are emptying now that the ban has been introduced and turnover is declining day by day. We went to the pub to have fun, together, while enjoying a cigarette and a drink. That cigarette makes it fun. It’s not fun to have to walk away from a conversation to stand around a corner. That cigarette is (still) allowed in our own house, so it’s better to stay at home now. Do we invite those people from the pub here anyway? The same conversations, the same drinks and our prized cigarette. Everything remains the same, except that we are at home and the catering tents can close.
Netherlands strict
You may have already noticed that the smoking ban, which applies throughout Europe, is implemented differently in all countries. The Netherlands clearly falls within the strict category. In Belgium, for example, there is a smoking ban in restaurants, but they use indoor smoking areas, closed off from the restaurant itself. Cigarettes are still allowed in bars and cafes. The judges also decide differently per country. For example, German catering entrepreneurs have gone to court with the same complaint as Dutch entrepreneurs. The Dutch were not right, but the Germans were and the ban has already been lifted in smaller establishments. The lawsuit concerned the fact that certain catering establishments do not have enough space to set up an extra room for smokers, which must also be closed off from the rest of the establishment. This causes losses for smaller businesses, as people are forced to stand outside. In the Netherlands, entrepreneurs lost their business. Simply put, it’s just bad luck for them. Then they should have made sure they had more space. If you go bankrupt, well then you go bankrupt, right? The judge really won’t suffer.
In Germany they were right and the judge was prepared to take a step towards the entrepreneurs. If they have too little opportunity to set up a smoking area, they do not have to adhere to the smoking ban. Visitors will soon see that people are smoking and if they don’t agree with it, they can go somewhere else.
Why is the Netherlands so much stricter? Are they really so tired of making tons of money from all those smoke addicts who buy a carton a week? Incomprehensible, right? Would that be why they would have raised all other prices? To prevent them from suffering losses due to their own ban? Excise duties up again! Go and fill up and you will immediately lose at least 1 rib from your body. A carton of cigarettes is cheaper and if, like me, you have to drive more than 50 km to work every day, the carton of cigarettes will last you even longer than the much too expensive gasoline!
And then for the smokers who don’t quit and don’t drive a car, let’s raise the prices of cigarettes again. This way we also take a little extra money from addicted cigarette smokers who do not have to pay for expensive gasoline! Then they also pay a little to reduce the loss caused by all the stoppers.
People, what are we doing ?
The smoking Dutchman.
Research has shown that Dutch people who smoke are by no means the worst. Many smokers respect non-smokers and are therefore happy to take them into account. When someone asks them to open a window or stand a step further away because the smoke is causing a nuisance, 78% of smokers are willing to do so without resistance. Of course there are always smokers who think they have the right and show no respect for non-smokers. Unfortunately, those people will always be there. Yet it is true that smokers have not only been banned, but are even discriminated against and the smokers are angry about that. Logical too!
Is it prohibited in internet cafes to play the same game for more than 3 hours? How many people are addicted to computer games, chatting or surfing the Internet?
Is it forbidden in casinos to throw more than 50 euros in a cupboard or on a table, because otherwise addicts would use it in an unhealthy way and often go bankrupt?
And is it now forbidden to order more than 3 beers in a pub, because it destroys the liver of addicts?
No, of course these bans have not been introduced. And why not? Because society would not be bothered by this. Yet everyone has to deal with nuisance from these types of addicts.
On an average working day, game addicts go to the PC 4 times an hour to check how the game is going and to quickly perform an action to breathe life into the game or increase the tension. 24 (over 8 hours of work) times an average of 5 minutes each time. This easily costs the employer 2 hours a day, which has to be paid while a game is being played. Not to forget the irritation it causes among colleagues. Sometimes even anger and rage. After all, they have to work for those two hours for their money, because they do not feel forced to keep an eye on the PC.
Gamblers who go bankrupt need to get money quickly to continue gambling. This is the compulsion of addiction. When there is no more money and they can no longer play, they panic and think of the craziest things to get money as quickly as possible. They steal, scam, rob stores and all that kind of stuff. They put people in danger and take money from people who had to work honestly and hard for it. The money we have worked hard for is taken from us in a split second if we are not careful and in this way we pay for someone else’s gambling addiction. Aren’t we bothered by this? Thought so!
And then all the alcoholics. How often do we have problems with people with bad drinks? Noisy people on the street who shout annoying things at you because they have been drinking too much. People in the pub who start fights, just because they no longer know what they are saying. Aren’t we bothered by this?
Smoking takes less time than a gaming addiction, less money than gambling and, unlike a drunkard, you still know exactly what you are doing and saying, even after 30 cigarettes!
What’s the big deal? Why are we being treated so harshly about our addiction and are they allowing all other addicts who are much worse for people and society to continue to worsen their addiction?
What have we done wrong and not all those others? Don’t we generally show respect to non-addicts? We take non-smokers into account. Why was n’t that enough? It is already more than what a gambling addict does. He shows no respect at all for the people from whom he steals money and he certainly does not take into account that this person has also had to work hard for that money and may even have to feed mouths with that money.
Apart from that, we pay for our addiction ourselves (with some exceptions).
The ban is getting out of hand
The annoying thing is that the smoking ban in the catering industry and in the workplace is not over. Perhaps you have already heard that truck drivers no longer smoke in their own cab? These drivers work hard, sitting alone in that cab on the road for hours and even days. At home, abroad, traffic jam, away from the family, on the way to earn money. They are alone in their cabin, where they stay all the time. No one is bothered by the cigarette smoke inside the cabin. What’s the problem? The problem is actually that the cabin is classified as a ‘workplace’ and smoking is prohibited there. People do not want to make a distinction between people in the business world and drivers who spend hours seeing nothing but their own cabin. Fine, but what about pavers and road workers, construction workers, roofers? You name it. Where they are working is also their workplace, right? Okay, this is outside, but it remains a workplace and it is already claimed that people are bothered by smoke even outside. Draw 1 line. Smoking in the workplace or not. Don’t discriminate. We are all at work because we have to earn money and we don’t want to feel obliged to choose a certain job because smoking is or is not allowed there. So highly trained smokers step out of their suits and into underpaid outdoor jobs. Only because they don’t intend to give up their only fun at work. Shame, right?
Certain groups have already taken action because they are bothered by cigarette smoke outside. Non-smokers walk past a pub, where everyone has to smoke outside. So walk through a cloud of smoke and immediately take action. A little respect our way wouldn’t hurt either, non-smokers! We also respected you, we respect you, as we stand outside for you. You’ve already achieved it with the whining. We have to stand outside. But this is not enough. You don’t want to walk on the other side of the street or take a step closer to the curb. Nooooo! You are deliberately going through the cloud of smoke so that you have a new reason to whine and further extend the ban. After all, addiction is always a bad thing and you still win if you say you’re bothered by us, right?
Sometimes we are outside having a cigarette and a non-smoker walks past who immediately makes a dirty face and then starts whining about this fact wherever he can. We, on the other hand, made a face at the same time because this person had a rather strange smell. Do we have to whine about this all day? Should certain scents be banned, or should showering every day be mandatory, because this bothers us???
So as a result, it won’t be long before we will be allowed to gather in front of the door of a catering establishment with our cigarette. We have to spread out, otherwise the non-smokers will suffer. There is also a considerable group of people taking action against smoking on the beach, as it bothers them. This way it will be completely beautiful. So we smokers can’t relax on the beach on our day off with a cigarette every so often, because then everyone will be bothered by us. We are actually treated like red ants. Only everyone packs their things to run away from red ants and we are expected to pack our things and run away. We are no longer allowed to enjoy anything, because non-smokers have all the rights in this so-called ,free country,. So next year we will no longer be allowed to smoke on the street, on the beach or anywhere outside. Not even in your own garden, because the smoke will probably go over the fence straight into the nose of the non-smoking neighbor who has just lit the heavily smoking barbecue and in an hour will smell even worse of smoke than we will after a whole day!
We are no longer allowed to smoke in our own homes, because a home is not airtight. Imagine that your cigarette smoke is escaping through the crack at the window and there is a non-smoker walking her dog. She can still experience considerable discomfort from this!
In short, the Dutch economy is collapsing, society is becoming less and less social and groups are being created that cannot cope or see each other. This in turn fuels violence and vandalism. So on and on. Is this really the intention?
We can all overdo it too! Total understanding for the ban in eateries. Totally agree, even as a smoker. Now I’m smoking a cigarette here, behind my laptop, as I write this. Would it bother the cat next to me? Maybe I should sit on the balcony for a while?
Come on people. The ban does not need to expand and certainly does not need to get out of hand. Show each other some respect and take everyone else into account. Then everything will be fine, right? Everyone has their own addiction and at times it can affect others, regardless of which addiction. It’s also difficult if I can’t use my entire airplane seat, because the lady next to me is addicted to chocolate and therefore needs a seat and a half. Yes, this bothers me. Still, all respect for this lady, because she will not always like it and certainly not always be happy to start this addiction. but hey, once you’ve started… Starting is easier than finishing. This also applies to any addiction. Respect for everyone else with everything that belongs to that person already solves a large part of the annoyance. Please be considerate of each other and ensure that you are not a burden to anyone. Of course, this has to come from both sides. Don’t walk through smoke if you don’t have to, just to make sure it actually bothers you and gives you a reason to complain, which may or may not be worse. Non-smokers have other things that can be annoying to someone else. Always remember that others are different and try to deal with that in a sympathetic way. With this discriminatory behavior we are only reaching a low point for many groups of people in the Netherlands.
Action: Stop expanding the smoking ban, purely to bully.
Solution: RESPECT and ACCEPTANCE that everyone has their own thing.