Councillors in Northern Ireland are becoming increasingly concerned that pubs are not taking the smoking ban seriously and will not be prepared in time. The issue was raised by Derry City Council chiefs, in light of the ban which is due to come into force on 30 April 2007. However, pubs are still waiting for the official guidelines, which means licensees are struggling to prepare. The councils chief environmental health officer Philip O'Doherty said it was unfortunate that the Planning Service had yet to issue guidelines to local proprietors, despite enforcement being less than three months away. "We had been promised this guidance would be available sometime in February, however that doesn't give bars very much time. We are aware of the challenges and accept that better guidance is needed. We also all accept that guidance is late in coming. We are in a state of flux, but make no mistake, 30 April is the day and the ban will be implemented from then."
In similar news, a team from Belfast City Council is taking to the city's streets from March 2007, in a bid to help stub out cigarette litter. Council staff will be targeting smokers outside office blocks as well as pubs and clubs. They will be handing out free "stubbies", which is a pocket pouch specially designed for disposing of cigarette butts. Around 50,000 butts are picked up off the streets every week by the council's cleaning staff, and the problem is expected to get worse when smoking becomes banned in public buildings from April.
This initiative is part of the wider "Brighter Belfast" campaign, which is aimed at creating a cleaner, more attractive city for everyone.
