Why Smokefree Liverpool Exists
Smoking kills, as numerous medical studies prove. But tobacco doesn’t just kill smokers - up to 100 people die in Liverpool alone, as a result of inhaling second-hand tobacco smoke.
Liverpool - a city which has always been in the forefront of public health innovation - decided to tackle this issue in 2003 (when the prospect of national legislation for smokefree workplaces seemed a remote possibility!).
The key fact is that workers’ health is at risk. The people who work behind the bar in the pub, or serve in the restaurant, are workers, and should be protected. SmokeFree Liverpool has never been about stopping people smoking - but about limiting the effects of tobacco smoke, and trying to make sure that people who choose not to smoke do not suffer from other people’s choice.
SmokeFree Liverpool fully supported Liverpool City Council’s Parliamentary bid to become the first city in the country to go 100% smokefree in the workplace - and is now working towards a smooth and comprehensive implementation of the national legislation in the city. We have always believed this is the only way to truly protect workers’ health, and are delighted that this protection is going to be available to workers everywhere.
