Five Places You Might Not Know You Can't Smoke
Although the smoking ban has been in place in Scotland for a while now, you still might not be entirely sure where you're not allowed to smoke or vape.
- 1. Bus Shelters
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If you're in a shelter that is more than 50% enclosed, where the smoke may be circulated round people who don't smoke, then you aren’t allowed to smoke there.
- 2. Tents and marquees
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Tents and marquees are included in the no smoking law as premises, so you can get a £50 fine for smoking in them.
- 3. Hospitals
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Hospitals in Scotland are smoke free – this means that patients, visitors and staff have to leave the hospital grounds if they want to smoke.
- 4. Phonebox
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The same with bus shelters, if the space is more than 50% enclosed, you can’t smoke in there.
- 5. A company car/van
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Even if you're the only person who uses the company vehicle, you still can't smoke. This is because it might be used by somebody else in the future.
Remember: it's illegal to smoke in a car if it has a passenger who is under the age of 18 and you can get a £100 fine for doing so.
- 6. Vaping
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Whether or not you can smoke an e-cigarette in bars, restaurants and cafés, is at the discretion of the organisations – so always be sure to ask first. ScotRail trains, certain supermarkets and some pub/café chains like Wetherspoons won't let you use your e-cigarette or vape. However, there are new rules in Scotland that make it illegal for young people to buy tobacco and nicotine vapour products (NVPs) - aka e-cigarettes or vapes - and anyone buying NVPs for those underage will also be breaking the law
There are more and more places where you can no longer smoke - why not consider quitting, not only for your own health, but to save your friends and family from the impacts of passive smoking.