13/04 JOE’s Daily Punts: Cheltenham & Champions League

Lighting up a cigarette in your car may soon become a thing of the past if a new bill has anything to do with it. Yes, it sounds like a nightmare but a smoking ban in your car could become a reality sooner than expected…

The Irish Daily Mirror reports that this controversial new bill has been written up in an attempt to protect children from exposure to second-hand smoke.

Senator John Crown is expected to bring a bill which outlines the car smoking ban in detail before the Seanad next week. The bill is being brought forward in an attempt to force the Minister for Health to introduce the law as soon as possible.

Apparently the Minister for Health, James Reilly, had promised that he would bring the bill into law last year, but at present, smoking in your car is still legal and Senator Crown is not too pleased about this.

Speaking about the bill, Senator Crown (who is a doctor by profession) said that the legislation is “extremely important and will limit the exposure of children to harmful cigarette smoke in cars.”

“In 2002, the banning of smoking in the workplace was the right thing to do. Extending this ban to cars in which children are passengers is the right thing to do now,” he added.

Senator Crown stated that children are “particularly vulnerable” to the effects of second hand-smoke. He said that children could experience various health complications such as asthma, respiratory diseases and even childhood cancers if they inhaled second-hand smoke on a regular basis.

“One hour of cigarette smoke particle exposure in a close car is comparable to the exposure a fire-fighter might receive over four to eight hours fighting a wildfire according to the US EPA [Environmental Protection Agency],” he said.

According to the Senator, various states and countries across the world have already introduced a similar ban when it comes to smoking in cars.

The Minister for Health has said that at the moment, proposals relating to smoking in cars are being considered by his department.

He also stated that if a ban were to come into play, there must be significant evidence to signify that smoking in cars is a risk to public health.