The proposals not only target tobacco use outside public venues but also come as part of a wider strategy to gradually outlaw smoking completely in the UK.
Keir Starmer acknowledged the necessity of addressing smoking, stating that over 80,000 deaths annually due to smoking represent preventable loss and significant strain on healthcare resources.
While health experts and most demographics support these outdoor smoking restrictions, the pub industry claims they could threaten its recovery post-Covid.
Critics, including Conservative leadership contenders, have dubbed the plans excessive, framing them as an overreach into personal freedoms and social control.
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