A clichéd thing to whine about if ever there was one. But the smoking ban- I hate it.
I don’t hate the principle of it. Just because I myself am a smoker, who can give you cancer just by looking at you, I’m still a rational human being. I understand that not everybody wants to be followed around by a cloud of nicotine and tar, having to go home stinking after every night out. That’s absolutely fair enough.It’s the ridiculous overreaching scale of the thing that gets to me.
I went outside a coach station the other day to have a cigarette. Big mistake. Instantly, a nicotine Nazi was upon me, explaining heatedly that I was still on National Express premises and I needed to move further out. I’m not exaggerating; he moved me about three feet, my smoke still billowing back to the place where I had just been standing.
Far be it from a second class citizen like me to point out that the only reason I was still in his precious coach station was because the coach was an hour late. However, that’s not the point. It now transpires that you can be fined £75- seventy five pounds!- for dropping a cigarette end on the floor, because councils are trying to crack down on littering. Again, I suppose it’s fair enough in principle, of course we want to “Keep Britain Tidy”, but there seems to be nowhere for smokers to go anymore. I, for one, feel like a criminal whenever I light up. Evil looks from old ladies are the least of it.
I’m a lawful citizen and a decent person, I like to think. I don’t even smoke in my own home because I’m not allowed to. I’ve chosen to smoke, and so I wish I could be left alone to get on with it. It’s me I’m damaging, not society.
Last week, a friend of mine was sent a letter demanding £75 from her for dropping her cigarette end out of her car window. I mean, they’d actually got the registration plate and followed it up. Is the crime level that low that cigarette ends take such a top priority?! On top of that, it’s only a £50 fine if you light up in the pub, so if there are no ashtrays outside, you may as well smoke where you are- it’s cheaper. There are a few that are going to extreme lengths to combat the smoking ban. Nick Hogan, a pub landlord, has always been against the smoking ban and allowed people to have cheeky fags in his pub. He appeared in court on January 28th, facing five charges of failing to prevent smoking on his premises and four of obstruction. Poor fellow.
If I was at all brave enough, maybe I’d make a stand like Mr Hogan. But as it is, I think I’ll stick to trying to avoid the glares of the elderly, and covert glances to check for police or community support officers before dropping my cigarette ends!
Hannah Leyland
