Ciarán Cuffe
Question:475 Mr. Cuffe asked the Minister for Health and Children his plans to prevent smoking on public transport. [11842/03]
Written Answers. - Public Transport.
Smoking is prohibited on all public service vehicles owned or operated by Dublin Bus. Under Dublin Bus by-laws, authorised persons, including inspectors, drivers and conductors, have powers to enforce regulations in this area. I am advised that Dublin Bus currently operates plain clothes monitoring to detect breaches of smoking by-laws on its services. Dublin Bus has also advised that in 2002 this operation resulted in 80 prosecutions with fines ranging from €50 to €240. I am advised that Dublin Bus proposes to continue with this type of covert monitoring operation this year. This approach is a very positive one and deserves our full support.
In relation to train services, under the Tobacco (Health Promotion and Protection) Regulations 1995, smoking is prohibited on the DART service and on all Arrow trains operated by Iarnród Éireann. On all other train services operated solely by Iarnród Éireann smoking is prohibited in at least two thirds of the seating area. The Enterprise train service between Dublin and Belfast which is operated jointly by Iarnród Éireann and Northern Ireland Railways is non-smoking. A prohibition on smoking on all train services is being introduced from 1 January 2004. This prohibition is based on recommendations contained in the report on the health effects of environmental tobacco smoke, ETS, in the workplace prepared by an independent scientific working group commissioned by the Office of Tobacco Control and the Health and Safety Authority which was published on 30 January 2003.
It is in everyone's interest that the prohibition on smoking on bus and train services is observed and enforced to ensure protection of passengers and public transport personnel from the harmful effects of toxic environmental tobacco smoke.