Merseyside councils gather momentum on SmokeFree

April 13, 2005 - PRESS RELEASE

On Friday 15th April Heart of Mersey will be hosting a Merseyside-wide meeting of key policy and decision makers from Local Authorities and Public Health organisations. The meeting, at Knowsley MBC Council Offices, is to consider possibilities for local legislation in Merseyside, similar to the Local Act of Parliament currently being championed by Liverpool City Council.

The meeting builds on a Coalition of Greater Merseyside Local Authorities and NHS organisations, which petitioned Health Secretary John Reid for legislation to protect the health of workers from Second Hand Smoke in November. The Coalition agreed to support the case for national legislation to prohibit smoking in enclosed workplaces and to take action to work towards a Smoke Free Greater Merseyside.

The delegates will hear about the Irish experience from keynote speaker Ann Marie Part, Chairman of Environmental Health Officers' Association (EHOA) in Dublin. Ann Marie was instrumental in the implementation of the much-publicised smoke free legislation across Ireland and has first hand experience of working collaboratively with local government and non-government organisations; her experience will be invaluable. This is Ann Marie's first visit to address delegates in the UK and she was particularly keen to visit the Merseyside area. Heart of Mersey and Smoke Free Liverpool are thrilled that Ann Marie has chosen to share her expertise with us in Merseyside and welcome her support to push the agenda forward.

"I am delighted to be invited to visit Merseyside and discuss going Smoke Free with Council Officers and Public Health Specialists from the area." said Ann Marie, "I have watched with interest the developments in Liverpool and see real opportunities to forge ahead, using the Liverpool model and experiences as solid foundations for wider legislation in Merseyside."

She continued: "One year on from legislation in Ireland, we've found that there is overwhelming support for the smoke-free law among smokers and non-smokers with 93% in favour. I truly feel that the effects of second hand smoke on staff in workplaces, and bars an pubs in particular is alarming and unnecessary and we now know that the levels of carbon monoxide in non-smoking bar workers has reduced by 45% as a direct result of the smoke-free law. I hope that workers in Liverpool, and Merseyside, will also see this benefit soon"

Also speaking on Friday will be Andy Hull, Director of Environmental Health and Trading Standards at Liverpool City Council and Andrea Crossfield, Smoke Free Liverpool Co-ordinator, who will give an overview of the preparation needed and the legal processes involved in submitting a Local Act of Parliament.

Pippa Sargent, Smoke Free Programme Manager for Heart of Mersey said today, "It's a great honour to bring Ann Marie over to speak to us in Merseyside. Her experience will be invaluable to the process. Research published last month estimated that over 2 people per working day die due to the effects of Second Hand Smoke in this country and yet these deaths could easily be avoided if we protect workers health and legislate for smoke free workplaces . It's a simple solution; Merseysiders could benefit very soon"