Britain is considering a ban on smoking outside bars

The UK government is considering banning smoking outside bars and pubs in a bid to improve public health.

Indoor lighting in pubs, workplaces and cafes was largely banned in 2007, relegating smokers to outdoor smoking areas.

Confirmation of an exclusive report in The sunPrime Minister Keir Starmer said on Thursday the country must “take action” to limit the burden of smoking on public coffers.

He told reporters on Thursday: “My starting point here is to remind everyone that more than 80,000 people lose their lives every year as a result of smoking.

“That is an avoidable death, it is a huge burden for the population [public health system] and of course it is a burden on the taxpayer.”

He said more details about the plans would be revealed in due course, but confirmed for now that the government “will be making decisions in this area.”

Smoking costs Britain more than £21 billion ($27.65 billion) a year in lost productivity, social care costs and direct costs to the public health system, the campaign group says Action against smoking and health.

It has been a major target of public health policy for decades and was a major focus of the country’s last government.

Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak previously announced a plan to drastically reduce adult smoking rates to 5% or less by 2030.

This ‘Smoke Free’ roadmap for Britain included a landmark bill to prevent anyone born after 2009 from ever legally purchasing tobacco products.

The new Labor government has pledged to preserve the bill, which will have to pass the Houses of Parliament before it can become law.

Members of the hospitality industry have raised concerns that a smoking ban outside pubs could damage their businesses.

Pub owner Lisa Burrage, 55, told the BBC that it should be up to companies, and not the government, to choose whether to allow smoking outside their premises.

“This will be just another hurdle that we in the hospitality industry have to overcome and can do without,” she said.

But others have wondered how much impact such a ban would have on sales. Founder of popular pub chain JD Wetherspoon, Tim Martin, told the broadcaster: “I don’t think this will have a major effect on our business one way or the other.”

However, the chief executive of rival bar chain Revolution Bars, Rob Pitchers, said he was unsure whether smoking outside pubs was “widespread enough to put any pressure” on the public health system.

Health activists have largely welcomed the proposed policy. But some have urged lawmakers to consider any unintended consequences it could have.

“The government is catching up with public expectations, and that means we don’t have to breathe tobacco smoke in places like children’s play areas and seating areas outside pubs, restaurants and cafes,” said ASH CEO Deborah Arnott in an email email sent statement.

“However, it is also important to ensure that there are still outdoor areas where people who smoke can smoke in the open air, rather than in their homes.”