Car smoking: MPs set to vote on ban when
children present
Smoking could be banned if under-18s are in the car
BBC
MPs are set to vote later on
whether to back a ban on smoking in cars when children are present.
If the Commons backs the
amendment to the Children and Families Bill, it will give the health secretary
the power to bring in a ban in England.
But it would not immediately
mean a change in the law.
Last week, more than 700
health experts wrote an open letter to MPs urging them to back the measure. But
critics say legislation is "unnecessary".
The amendment empowers, but
does not compel, the government to make it a criminal offence for drivers to
fail to prevent smoking in their vehicles when children are present.
The government has told its
MPs that they can have a free vote on the issue. Downing Street confirmed that
Mr Cameron would miss the vote, as he is staying in the South West overnight to
visit areas affected by flooding.
Labour has said that if the
measure does not become law before the next election, it will be included in
its manifesto.
'Line the state shouldn't cross'
In their letter, published in
the British Medical Journal last week, the respiratory health experts argued
that exposure to second-hand smoke is a "major cause of ill-health in
children", particularly among the most disadvantaged groups.
It says smoking in cars
exposes children to particularly "high amounts of tobacco smoke" and
there is now a consensus that children should be protected from such
unnecessary hazards.
It also says there are
precedents to a ban, including laws to require people to wear seatbelts and,
more recently, the ban on mobile phones while driving.
Bans on smoking in cars
carrying children already exist in countries including Australia, Canada, South
Africa and the US.
Simon Clark, director of
smokers' lobby group Forest, said smoking in cars with children was
"inconsiderate", but there was "a line the state shouldn't cross
when it comes to dictating how people behave in private places".
He urged MPs to reject the
amendment.
In Wales, the government has
said it would consider a ban if an awareness campaign did not lead to a drop in
children's exposure to second-hand smoke.
In Scotland, Liberal Democrat
MSP Jim Hume has indicated he will be presenting a bill this year to bring in a
ban, while Northern Ireland's health minister has announced plans for a
consultation on the issue.
Smoking in cars
- Smoke
can stay in the air for up to two and a half hours even with a window
open.
- Second-hand
smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals, some of which are known to cause
cancer.
- Exposure
has been strongly linked to chest infections, asthma, ear problems and cot
death in children.
- Research
indicates that 300,000 children in the UK visit a GP each year because of
the effects of second-hand smoke, with 9,500 going to hospital.
- Smoking
in a car creates a higher concentration of toxins than in a bar. Some research has put it at 11 times higher.
- Bans on
smoking in cars when children are present already exist in some US states,
including California, as well as in parts of Canada and Australia.