A Victorian smoker outside Flinders Street Station in Melbourne. Photo: AAP Image/Julian Smith.
One councillor’s quest to completely ban smoking in Melbourne.
Smokers in the city of Melbourne as well as the Victorian Premier Denis Napthine have rubbished one City of Melbourne councillor’s push to make Melbourne’s CBD completely smoke free.
If the ban goes ahead, it’s believed Melbourne would be the first CBD that has a smoke-ban. The ban, motioned by Melbourne City councillor Richard Foster, needs the support of six of eleven councillors, with Cr Foster telling the Herald Sun that he was confident he had majority support.
And the councillor has the support of Nicole Papasavas, restaurant manager of Stalactites on Lonsdale Street, who says the ban is a positive thing that she supports.
“It creates a nice atmosphere, it’s a lot cleaner and encourages good health,” Ms Papasavas tells Neos Kosmos of smoke-free environments.
The non-smoker says the last thing she wants is a “face full of smoke” when she’s dining in Melbourne’s CBD.
“I would rather it be a non-smoking environment at all cafes and restaurants in Melbourne’s CBD,” she says.
When asked if the smoking ban could potentially harm her business, she was certain it wouldn’t.
“I don’t believe the ban will affect us at all, I think people have accepted the non-smoking policy that’s been around for a quite a number of years now so it’s not something that would affect our business necessarily.”
If the ban goes ahead, smoking would be illegal for pedestrians, footpath diners and even building site workers anywhere in the Hoddle grid bounded by Flinders St, Spencer St, Spring St and the Queen Victoria Market. There would be designated smoking shelters in the CBD for smokers to gather.
Readers took to social media to voice their concern over the proposed ban. Mary Day agrees with the ban and says: “I think it’s an innovative idea and Melbourne would set the trend for the rest of the world. Let’s be real about this, no one smokes forever (unless they die from a smoking related disease).”
Toula Apostolopoulos says she doesn’t agree with the ban and says they should look at banning drugs and drunks in Melbourne’s CBD before smoking.
Soulz Hronis agrees with the smoking ban but says the same should go for drugs, alcohol, buses, and four-wheel drives, stating “it’s an absolute joke a mother of one or two kids to be driving such a vehicle, even on her own to work, not only dangerous but if we are so concerned of the environment many issues to consider.”
Peter/Sarah Bakoulas is concerned that there are too many restrictions on the people of Melbourne, with Di Drew saying it is “an act of class war”.
source: Neos Kosmos
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