Despite the threat of a ban on smoking in pubs, the industry is optimistic that it is taking necessary steps avert any action. Phil Mellows reports
Will they or won't they? The threat of legislation on smoking has hung like a cloud of particulates over the pub industry for several years. On countless occasions it has seemed to dispel, only to thicken once more.
This week the new danger comes from research into passive smoking among barstaff (see News, page seven). But underlying all this, optimism is higher than ever that the trade is taking the action required to avert a smoking ban.
The Publican Newspaper's own research, published in the Market Report issue on August 20, showed that 34 per cent of publicans are displaying signs to make customers aware of their smoking policy and that 39 per cent of pubs now have a no-smoking area - a 70 per cent increase on the 23 per cent recorded in 1997.
Improved understanding and application of ventilation systems mean that more non-smoking pub customers are able to eat and drink comfortably alongside smokers as operators, with the help of the latest technology, are finding increasingly ingenious ways to take the smoke out of their pubs.
Oliver Griffiths at the industry's AIR (Atmosphere Improves Results) initiative, which promotes cleaning up the air in pubs, expects that 1,000 outlets will this year qualify as ventilated premises under the voluntary smoking charter.
The success of the latter is key to the future of the campaign. Under the Public Places Charter on Smoking, agreed between the hospitality industry and the Department of Health, 50 per cent of pubs must display signs by 2003 to ward off legislation.
Its success so far means that Nick Bish, chairman of the Public Places Charter Group, is now considering publicising its signs among customers, but as the industry closes in on its target it could be that the major source of threat shifts from central government to local authorities.
The Greater London Authority (GLA), for instance, is currently talking about banning all smoking in public places.
There are positive signs here too, however, and several councils are seeking partnerships with the trade to come to a solution that satisfies both the demands of public health and the health of publicans' tills.
In direct response to the GLA's mutterings, earlier this month the Royal Borough of Kensington, working alongside AIR, brought together health officials, pub operators and ventilation and air cleaning experts in a conference titled A Fresh Approach to Fresh Air.
"Whatever we do must make good sense as well as health sense - and we must do it in partnership with the trade," said Dr Yi Mien Koh, the area's director of public health, catching the spirit of the event, one of many that are being held around the country.
More evidence that local authorities and the trade are working together constructively comes from Wellingborough in Northamptonshire where the council's environmental department is playing an active role in promoting the Charter.
As well as advising licensees on clean air policies it is supplying them with drip-mats and laminated posters advertising its stop smoking support service and regular clinics.
The greatest concern, at least this week, is about the health of barstaff, however.
Earlier this year a barmaid in Australia successfully sued her employer for not adequately protecting her from tobacco smoke at work and collected £170,000 in damages.
Staff don't have the choice of walking out of a smoky pub, and, to make matters worse, old-fashioned ventilation systems, many of which are still in operation, direct smoky air away from customers - and towards the bar.
It isn't only legislation that publicans need to be worried about, though.
As Wellingborough Council's pack points out, competition is such that operators need to be rigorously focused on the needs of their customers - non-smokers and smokers alike.
Ventilation, air cleaning and no-smoking areas, plus signs by the door to tell people what they can expect inside, are all part of good customer service.
The proof is in the profits made by licensees who have successfully acted on a smoking policy. In AIR's trials food sales grew by up to 50 per cent and drinks sales by up to 20 per cent. On top of the hard figures, if you are a non-smoker yourself, there is your own comfort and health to think about.
Jean Avello runs a Scottish & Newcastle pub, the Greyhound, in London's Kensington Square, where she estimates 70 per cent of customers and 100 per cent of staff are smokers - except for herself.
"At the end of a day I was smelling so much of cigarettes that I had to have a shower every night before going to bed," she said. "Undoubtedly I lost a lot of customers because of the smoke."
Then, in February this year, a refurbishment tackled the smoke problem head on with a ventilation system that also respected the building's listed status.
"Smokers and non-smokers can never be separated in a pub, but I understand the risks of passive smoking and we have to consider staff and non-smokers," said Jean.
"A pub, like anywhere else, needs to be a clean, friendly environment.
"Now we have proper ventilation and there's only one word for it. It's lovely!"
The Public Places Charter
The Public Places Charter is a voluntary code agreed between the Department of Health and the hospitality industry. The idea is that, by placing nationally recognised signage at entrances, potential customers can tell what the atmosphere will be like inside a pub, restaurant or bar before entering.
The scheme encourages operators to improve overall air quality through the provision of no-smoking areas and ventilation. The Charter is seen by the Government as an alternative to regulation.
The five policy options are listed below. To comply licensees must put up the appropriate sticker or sign at the entrance and keep a written policy statement. All these items are available free from AIR.
The "Ventilated Premises" options require venues to comply with the Charter standard in accordance with Health and Safety Executive guidelines. Call AIR for a ventilation assessment if you feel this might apply to your pub.
- Contact AIR for independent ventilation advice and free Charter signs and statements at AIR, Freepost LON8895, London SW1P 1YE or email: air.initiative@virgin.net
Going with the flow:When installing ventilation equipment the message is simple - get it right
Licensees have been aware of the damage that a smoky atmosphere can do to their business for many years. That's why there is hardly a pub in the country that doesn't have an extract fan or two.
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