Smoking ban not to blame for FF losses
While some smokers may have used this as an opportunity to punish Fianna Fail, it is highly unlikely that the population as a whole did so.
In the first instance, 75% of the population do not smoke, and of the 25% who do some 70% of them wish to quit. Hence, a huge majority of the population would see the ban as benefiting their health status. In addition, all political parties, including Sinn Fein, have advocated strongly for the ban.
A clearer picture emerges when one examines some of the actual results from the elections. In the Dublin EU elections, the poll-topper, Gay Mitchell, was the most vociferous supporter of the smoking ban when he was shadow spokesperson for health.
Contrast his result with that of the candidate who actively campaigned against the ban, Paul Doonan, who polled the lowest number of votes. In the local elections, a prominent Fianna Fail politician/publican from Galway who was very much the face and voice of the Vintners Federation of Ireland against the smoking ban lost his seat.
The reality is that the smoking ban has been warmly embraced by a huge majority of the population. They recognise that it is a necessary health and safety issue.
Any attempt to tinker with the ban or to minimise its impact would be likely to unleash that support for the ban in a manner that politicians would never forget.
Dr Fenton Howell,
ASH Ireland,
5, Northumberland Road,
Dublin 2.
