Plane-ly Smokefree - your chance to Speke up

August 16, 2005 - PRESS RELEASE FROM SMOKEFREE LIVERPOOL

Visitors to Liverpool John Lennon Airport will be able to pledge their support for the `Liverpool Smokefree Bill` this week as the campaign `Takes-off` at the Speke based airport with postcard signing.

The Bill - which would make all of the city's workplaces 100% smokefree - would particularly benefit the people in the airport's locality, as Speke suffers from one of the highest rates of smoking related lung cancer in Western Europe.

Part of a city-wide drive, campaigners have been urging people to sign postcards supporting the campaign at various locations including the Royal Liver Building, St John's Shopping Centre, the Royal and Aintree hospitals and Liverpool Central Library, over the last few weeks.

Located near the airport's check-in desks, SmokeFree staff are on hand to provide information and to allow the public to pledge their support until Sunday August 21.

The campaign comes as the Government considers its own proposals for the restriction of smoking in workplaces. However, the current plans would exempt pubs that do not serve food and all private members' clubs, which would still jeopardise the lives of the most at risk workers and worsen health inequalities in certain areas of the city.

"The Government's current plans fall far short of what is needed to fully protect the people of Liverpool against the dangers of second hand tobacco smoke," said Paula Grey, Lead Director of Public Health for North, South and Central Liverpool PCTs.

"In Speke, for example, there is a particularly high concentration of so-called `wet` pubs that would be exempt from the proposed legislation. That is why in the interests of saving lives and protecting health we must press ahead with the city's own Bill."

Andrea Crossfield, SmokeFree Liverpool Programme Director, said: "We have worked very hard over the last few weeks to ensure that the people of Liverpool have had the opportunity to pledge their support for the campaign. The response we have received has been tremendous so far and we fully expect this to continue with our presence at the airport this week."

Andy Gower, Director of Airport Operations at Liverpool John Lennon Airport, commented: "As an integral part of the Speke area, the health and well-being of local residents is obviously an issue in which we have an active interest. Because of this we are glad to facilitate the SmokeFree Liverpool campaign, giving both local residents and visitors to the airport the opportunity to pledge their support."