TL:DR – Ban on Vaping in Cars with Children Planned Under Smoke-Free Proposals
- Drivers may face a ban on smoking and vaping with children in the car.
- New regulations aim to protect children from secondhand smoke in playgrounds, outside schools, and in vehicles.
- Smoking will be prohibited outside hospitals and health facilities, while vaping remains permitted for quitters.
- Outdoor areas near hospitality venues and open public spaces, like beaches, are exempt from the ban.
- A government consultation will assess the proposal, with expert backing for its swift implementation.
Vaping in cars with children to be banned under smoke-free plans | News UK
More places in England are set to become smoke and vape-free, including cars with children travelling in them (Picture: Shutterstock)
Drivers could soon be banned from smoking and vaping if they have children in the car.
Ministers are drafting plans to prevent people from smoking, vaping or using heat tobacco in playgrounds, outside schools and in cars with under-18s travelling with them.
The move is part of government crackdown on the harms from secondhand smoke.
The Department of Health wants to extend smoke-free places to protect children and vulnerable people, including from the risk heart disease, lung cancer and asthma.
Where else will smoking be banned?
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Smoking would be officially banned outside hospitals and health facilities, while vaping would still be allowed to support smokers trying to quit.
While smoking is already banned indoors, they would also become strictly vape-free under the proposal.
The smoke ban would also apply to workplaces and public transport.
Smoking and vaping will still be allowed outdoors near pubs, bars and restaurants (Picture: In Pictures/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, outdoor spaces near hospitality venues – like bars, pubs and restaurant gardens – will be exempt, meaning smoking and vaping will still be allowed.
Open public spaces, including beaches, are also exempt from the ban.
The smoke-free ban will not extend to people’s homes.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: ‘No child in a playground or hospital patient should suffer because someone else chooses to smoke.
‘Secondhand smoke increases the risk of heart disease and lung cancer and we want to protect children and the sick from harm.
‘Prevention is better than cure, so this Government is taking pressure off the NHS and building a healthier Britain where everyone lives well for longer.’
Professor Sir Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer, said: ‘People who do not smoke but who are exposed to secondhand smoke can suffer significant harmful effects on their health, including an increased risk of asthma, poor birth outcomes, several cancers, stroke and heart disease.
‘The health risks are greatest for children, pregnant women and people with medical conditions.
‘No smoker wants to harm people, but with secondhand smoke they do – and these measures would reduce the harm secondhand smoke causes the most medically vulnerable in our society.’
When will the ban happen?
The proposal to extend smoke-free places in England will go through a 12-week government consultation before the next steps, so not all details are set in stone yet.
The consultation will look at how the outdoor boundaries for possible exemptions will be set to make the rules fair and workable, the Department of Health said.
The government insisted it will listen to concerns from businesses, and that outdoor hospitality spaces have been excluded from the planned changes.
What have experts said about the plan?
The British Heart Foundation has thrown its weight behind the proposal.
The charity’s chief executive, Dr Charmaine Griffiths, said that no child should ‘have to walk through a cloud of deadly secondhand smoke on their way to the classroom or playground.’
‘We strongly support the Government’s consultation and the landmark legislation behind it, and we call for urgent implementation to protect everyone from harm,’ she added.