Smokers Fined AND Refered To NHS Quit Smoking Service

Story here

Two drivers have been fined by Rushmoor council for smoking in a work vehicle. They were each issued with a £50 fixed penalty notice when environmental health officers saw them smoking while they were working.

Colin Alborough, Environmental health manager said, "We are still finding a few people that are prepared to flout the law, especially in public and work vehicles"
He added, "The law was brought in to protect people. Research shows that second hand smoke can seriously damage your health".

If people are expected not to flout the law, then the law should be fair and make sense. This law does not protect anybody. If these people wish to smoke that that is their business. If someone else uses the vehicle, secondary smoke "left behind" will do them no harm. At most it will leave a bit of a smell.
Of course no mention is made to what "research" he is referring to.

However, this is the really dodgy bit:

"Both drivers who received the fines were very keen to give up smoking, and both have been referred to the NHS Quit4Life service."

A friend of mine was caught driving over the limit eighteen months ago. He was banned for one year but got three months knocked off the ban for attending an alcohol awareness course and providing evidence that he was not alcohol dependant.

Drink driving has its own implications which I will not go into as its not the purpose of this post, however referring these drivers to the Quit4Life service sounds like a very similar approach. Smoking behind the wheel has no safety implications and the protecting health argument is pants.

It probably only means they were informed that the service is available, however I can definitely see other, much more serious implications for the future.