Martin under fire as smoking ban woes mount

HEALTH MINISTER Micheál Martin's smoking ban last night looked vulnerable to a raft of legal challenges.

In an embarrassing turnabout, the minister announced last night that hotel bedrooms would be exempted from the smoking restrictions along with psychiatric hospitals, hospices and nursing homes.

Just a fortnight ago, the minister announced categorically that prison cells would be the only areas within workplaces that would be exempted from the ban.

However, following advice from the Attorney General, Mr Martin yesterday extended the list to include the other four categories, a move that has prompted a chorus of criticism from the opposition, as well as renewed threats of legal challenges from the hospitality industry.

The minister conceded last night that the exemptions will mean that the ban will not now come into place on January 26, but sometime in early to mid-February. This is because the EU needs a notification period of three months before amendments to the regulations can be implemented.

Mr Martin said he will announce the new date later today, after further consultations with the Attorney General.

The most unexpected addition to the list was hotel bedrooms, which the opposition claim could begin a process of watering down the regulations.

"This is the thin end of the wedge," said Fine Gael health spokesperson Olivia Mitchell, who said that others, including guesthouses, could not now seek a similar exemption. "He has signed the regulations and now changes his mind about all the details. He had a year to sort out all this. He is jeopardising his own legislation. Lots of people are ready to challenge this."

Ms Mitchell chided the minister over what she said was his neglect of detail.

"[The smoking ban] was his political salvation, but his silver bullet has exploded in his face," she said.

"All he had to do was to attend to the detail and he did not do that."

The minister's political problems on the ban were compounded yesterday by renewed threats of legal challenges.

The Prison Officers Association, unhappy at the exemption for prison cells, said it would be considering its legal options.

Finbarr Murphy of the Irish Hospitality Industry Alliance said that in excess of 70% of Irish pubs had pre-1902 licences which covered the entire premises including bedrooms.

He said the Department of Health regulations, which distinguished between public and private areas, were in conflict with the licensing laws which made no such distinction.

"There is, without doubt, going to be court cases in relation to that . . . The smoking ban issue is a long way from being resolved or settled," he said.

The minister last night played down the consequences of the development, saying the additional exemptions had brought legal certainty and had fireproofed the regulations from certain legal challenges. The delay was a matter of no major import.

"My view is that for the sake of a week or two, the date can be moved back," he said.