EU may ban public smoking

In a policy paper released Tuesday, EU regulators said they favour a ban that does not include any exemptions for establishments, such as bars serving food, Bloomberg news reported.

However, the EU is delaying introducing legislation to guarantee a smoke-free environment across the entire bloc because "the desirable level of EU involvement in promoting smoke-free legislation is an open question."

So far, 13 EU nations have drafted rules to restrict smoking in public. However, smoking bans have met strong opposition in some countries, including Germany, which is Europe's biggest tobacco market, Bloomberg reported.

Each year in the EU, second-hand smoke is responsible for the deaths of 79 000 adults, according to the European Commission, the EU's executive arm. – (HealthDayNews)

January 2007