Martin to study smoking ban on New York visit

HEALTH MINISTER Micheál Martin will get first-hand experience of the operation of the smoking ban in New York next week.

Mr Martin heads on a week-long trip to the US, focusing predominantly on the health effects of smoking, ahead of the introduction of the blanket workplace smoking ban in January.

Lobby groups against the introduction of the ban in this country have used the opposition arising from the ban in New York as an example of what could happen in this country next year.