Smoke rebel Howitt fights on

Colin I agree that MPs won't break the law if they light up inside the Houses of parliament, but it is part of their rules now so it isn't, as you say, "voluntary". Bob

sorry bob your wrong mp who want still smoke in parliament its voluntary

Go Mr.Howitt, it would have been easier if the government had let us put signs in our pubs to say they were either 'smoking' or 'no smoking' then the public could choose whether they entered that pub or not. We are allowed freedom of speech. Why is this government trying to ruin our businesses that we are all working damn hard to keep!

MR A VAN DEN BROECK (LANDLORD) remarks about MPs being able to smoke in the House of Commons. Don't believe the propaganda Mr VDB, they can't. The Commons and the Lords have voted to have the same restrictions as the rest of us, and they have to go outside to smoke just like you and me.

one point i would make to jon hundreds of people a year are diagnosed with skin cancer every year in this country a preventable illness caused by overexposure to uv rays either by sun beds or sunbathing so will he campaign to outlaw these pursuits as he has for smoking which by the way the gov own research admits they can find no entomological link to cancer at this time never mind what ash and the other self appointed health police state , people like jon give this gov the green light to destroy the pub trade and its people like mr howitt who are trying to stand up to bigots who obvious have no interest in this once great profession

WHY HAS NO ONE COMMENTED ON THE FACT THAT THE PEOPLE WHO MADE THIS LAW CAN STILL SMOKE AT WORK AND WHEN THEY ARE ENJOYING A DRINK AFTER WORK IN THE HOUSES OF PARLIMENT.

Jon - There has never been a single death certificate issued containing the words "smoking" or "tobacco". The most effective way of cutting deaths due to smoking would be to stop spinning the statistics. For example, a 'smoker' is defined as anyone who has smoked 100 cigarettes in their LIFETIME! So if you only ever smoked 5 packs of ciggies aged 16, then die of cancer aged 96, your death is recorded as "smoking related".

Any hope of pubs recovering after a poor winter have had their hopes dashed with England being knocked out of Euro 2008.

Jon Perhaps it doesn't occur to you that for many elerly people the cafe, pub etc will be WARMER than home, and also in times past they were able to socialise in pubs. You are suggesting that it's better having people huddled alone at home wondering whether to put on another bar on the fire ...

Belinda says: "The smoking ban increases their exposure both to the cold and to isolation. They go out less because of having to expose themselves to winter conditions to smoke" Well if they go out less then won't they be warmer????? If you don't think nicotine is addictive, go ask any ex-heroin addict who has given up smoking which was the hardest to do. To compare this debilitating condition to sunbathing or fried-food is very ignorant. Smoking is the greatest preventable cause of the difference in death rates between rich and poor in this country.

Robert Hayes Your comment is typical of those who see well-being only in terms of health, rather than political power or community partipation. But if you want to talk about health, that's fine. Just this morning I was listening to radio reportage of elderly people dying of the cold in winter. What do older people fear? Cold and isolation. The smoking ban increases their exposure both to the cold and to isolation. They go out less because of having to expose themselves to winter conditions to smoke, and because their pals will be doing the same so there will be fewer people to socialise with. On the economic side, many employers have become quite vincdictive and prevented smoking throughout their sites. Who does this hurt most? Workers on 10 and 12 hour shifts: not office workers or executive workers. The legislation was quite unnecessary in the first place. Pretending it is somehow good for workers to be ordered about and have their recreational time interfered with really takes the biscuit.

Robert K - "Addiction to taking substances in lethal doses is a form of disease." - Would you include fried food lovers in that statement? Or sunbathers? What about men who drink more than the govt advised pint-a-day? Or women who drink a glass of wine per day? Sorry, it's you antis who suffer from Anti-Smoking Dysfunction Syndrome (ASDS), which is clearly a disease. It can be characterized as a 'psychoneurotic phobia'.

The smoking ban is not against working class people. Addiction to taking substances in lethal doses is a form of disease. If the law was really against a section of society such as working class people who have a higher tendency to smoke it would encourage smoking.

go for it Mr Howitt, people go on about human rights all the time what about the human rights of smokers and licencees of smaller pubs that are having to shut down because they cant afford to keep their trade running. How many people have lost their livelihoods since July? did the government ever think about that?

Howitt should not defend himself as any such case will become a precedent and make it difficult for others to fight the ban.

http://www.nber.org/papers/w13599 The cost per pack of human life - US 222 He should obey the law or change his profession.

Keep on going Mr Howitt, If only their was more like you, then perhaps our trade would not be in such a struggle, to make end,s meet.