Banning smoking in cars + areas where children are...

[R1Geezer]

Further attacks on the social lepers, or sensible measures? I must admit I do feel sorry for the kids I see in the backs of cars, in a safety seat of course, gasping for breath, getting gassed by cynide and 500 other poisonous gases, why do smoking parents think so little of their children?

Should Smoking Be Banned In Cars and Places Where Children Are?

This poll is closed.

Should The Smoking Ban Be Extended to Cars and Areas Where Children Are?

• No - The car and home are areas which should not be effected by by smoking bans - 50 votes
• 54%
• Yes - smoking should be banned in these areas - 43 votes
• 46%

See final stats

Stats until: 11:34 Thu 21st Nov 2024 (Refreshed every 5 minutes)

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[daftgrandad]

Despite laws to the contrary,people still continue to drive without seat belts and use mobile phones.
It seems that is only when police do a "crackdown",that any get caught.
With this in mind,as others have said,legislation to stop smoking in cars,would be virtually impossible to police on a regular basis.

[joggerjayne]

It would be easier to police than the mobile phone laws.

The cloud of smoke would be a clue !

[jno]

JJ, the government already tells you what you can't do in cars (mobiles, eg, as R1G points out). Cars are public spaces, not private ones, and dangerous objects as well. Homes are different.

[Ankou]

but if the driver has no sprogs, then its ok ?

if someone is walking in the park smoking a fag and happens to walk near by the playground area, will they be arrested and shipped off to siberia ?

[ummmm]

Since they banned the use of mobile phones I have never used one. So in many cases a ban is enough to stop them.

(I don't smoke in my car.....kids or no kids)

[craft1948]

Why should I be banned from smoking in my car, I wouldn't allow children in it.
I never smoke if the dog is in the car.............

[Davethedog]

Tell you something else - If you smoke in the car its harder to sell.

[joggerjayne]

jno ...

Yes, cars are dangerous. And things that people do in cars, which distract them from the road, are dangerous.

I think ALL of the following should be illegal whilst driving ...

eating

struggling out of your coat

turning round (usually done by mothers with children in the back)

changing a CD

programming a sat nav

putting on make up

opening the glove box

Etc.

All of these are just as dangerous as using a mobile. Infact, more dangerous, because they all involve taking ones eyes off the road.

[ummmm]

Do people struggle out of their coats while the car is moving?

They are things you do at traffic lights Jayne.

[Barmaid]

You can be stopped for all of those and smoking if it leads you to not being in control of the vehicle.

However, I do think banning smoking where it has no impact whatsoever on other road users (say for example as a passenger) is a step too far.

The police police drivers in general terms for the safety of all road users (ie speeding, drinking, unsafe loads etc). What harm can a passenger have a fag do to other road users if the driver consents?

And I take the view that a car is private. It's only when you attempt to use it in public it becomes subject to the rules regarding use and control. What I do inside my vehicle is entirely up to me. If I want to sit on the drive and have a fag in it, I should be allowed to do so!

[joggerjayne]

ummmm ...

People eat and change CD's all the time.

If they are looking at their CD label, they're not watching the road ahead.

At least smokers can watch the road (once they're lit up).

[jno]

JJ: I agree. In fact most of them probably are illegal already.

Nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke, at home or at work, increase their risk of developing lung cancer by 20 percent to 30 percent, according to the US surgeon general's report

http://www.surgeongen...eeches/06272006a.html

But those who disagree are in the meantime still free to prove themselves right by blowing smoke in their children's faces. Go for it, what have you got to lose?

[Avatar]

I remember as a kid going on mens club organised coach trips out to Butlins or wherever. It was awful with everyone smoking all the way there and back, feeling sick and what have you and they put it down as "travel sickness" and carry on regardless. Glad those days are over for todays kids.

[vulcan]

when will it stop ?
http://www.scientific...t-is-third-hand-smoke

[joggerjayne]

Interesting article, Vulcan. Will "Third hand smoke" will become the latest scare?

But how does one reconcile these statements from the article ...

"a large number of people ... have no idea that third-hand smoke ... is a health hazard for infants and children"

"Third-hand smoke" ... has worried researchers and nonsmokers for several years."

"The level of toxicity in cigarette smoke is just astronomical"

... with this statement from the article ...

" ... he is not aware of ANY studies directly linking third-hand smoke to disease"

Or, to put it bluntly ...

... he has NO FACTS WHATSOEVER to back up his statements !

[joggerjayne]

Ignore the headlines.

Read the facts.

The paediatrician is talking boIIocks.

[R1Geezer]

Docspock, you miss the point, I could give a thrupney if it's harmless, it's bl00dy unpleasant and children or anyone else for that matter should not have to inhale it, end of