Greece
Greece enacted a new smokefree law for most public places on September 1, 2010. The law covers restaurants, bars, cafes, office, and public transportation. It comes after eight years of changes in the country's smokefree provisions, including a 2009 law that contained some exemptions and that was not widely enforced.
A European Commission study found that Greece has the highest percentage of smokers among countries in the EU. The study estimates that 1 in 2 adolescents and above 40% of the adult population are smokers.
| Smokefree News |
| Greece imposes smoking ban in enclosed public spaces ATHENS, GREECE (BNO NEWS) – Greece imposed on Wednesday a new law banning smoking in enclosed public spaces, after previous attempts to impose partial bans failed. According to the Kathimerini newspaper the ban came into effect on Wednesday and it is aimed at bringing Greek legislation into line with the European Union laws. The smoking ban will apply to bars, cafes, restaurants, offices and in public transport. Smokers that break the new regulation could be fined with hundreds of between 50 and 500 euros; businesses that allow smoking in enclosed spaces will be fined up to €10,000. Greece is one of the European nations with higher percentage of smokers. At least 42 percent of individuals over 15 years old smoke, in contrast with the European average of 28 percent. “It will contribute to the work we’re doing today that’s aimed at changing attitudes, norms and behavior to improve our quality of life and to make our country viable, not just its economy but in everyday life,” Prime Minister George Papandreou said. Greece partially banned smoking in 2002 and 2003 but those were largely ignored. In 2009, an antismoking legislation was introduced but with loopholes that caused unfair competition between small and large restaurants. ... Greece smoking ban takes effect ATHENS — Greek smokers came under renewed pressure to curb their habit Wednesday as a new law banning smoking in enclosed public places went into effect in Europe's most nicotine-addicted nation. Under the slogan "Stub out your cigarettes, add to your life," the legislation bans smoking in all enclosed public spaces except casinos and large music halls, which have a nine-month extension to June. The drive supplements a prior crackdown in July 2009 which was aggressively pursued for a few months before controls relaxed when elections were called. Those who persist in flouting the law face fines from 50 to 500 euros (64 to 640 dollars) while business operators risk tougher penalties of 500 to 10,000 euros and repeat offenders could have their licences revoked. This time the government says it will enforce the measure which Prime Minister George Papandreou said would "contribute to our goals ... of making the country more viable, not only economically but in daily life." However Health Minister Mariliza Xenoyannakopoulou said smokers would have a one-month grace period during which they will not face punishment for breaking the new law. "This is matter of public health, not a witch-hunt," the minister said. As inspectors fanned out around the city centre on Wednesday accompanied by TV crews, operators quickly pulled ashtrays off tables. "It would be good if the law is respected this time round," said cafe prioprietor Vassilis Kaplanoglou. "The government looks determined but it's far from won yet," he told AFP. ... Greece introduces total smoking ban Smoking in indoor public areas is banned in Greece from today. Eight years of partial bans have been largely ignored by the Greeks, 42 per cent of whom smoke, well above the European average of 29 per cent. Offenders will be fined up to €10,000 and face swift prosecution ... Chain-smoking Greeks face tough ban ATHENS, Greece — Greece is set to impose a tough smoking ban starting Wednesday that will outlaw lighting up in all public indoor areas and prohibit most tobacco advertising. The country's health ministry says the measures are necessary after partial smoking bans that started eight years ago have largely been ignored. Some 42 percent of Greeks over age 15 smoke, well above the European Union average of 29 percent, according to EU figures. ... On September 1, Greece will embark on its fourth attempt in eight years to ban ... On September 1, Greece will embark on its fourth attempt in eight years to ban lighting up in cafes, restaurants and workplaces. The new law represents a “total ban on smoking in all indoor places”, Health Minister Mariliza Xenoyiannakopoulou said in an August 19 interview with Flash 96 radio, attributing the failure of the last ban, introduced in 2009, to “exceptions and loopholes” which caused “unfair competition between small and large restaurants”. The Pasok minister was referring to the concession that allowed the owners of premises smaller than 70 square metres to declare themselves either exclusively smoking or non-smoking establishments and the owners of larger venues to install fully enclosed, air-conditioned smoking areas. Heralded at the time by New Democracy health minister Dimitris Avramopoulos as a law “ending the myth that we make laws that we don’t respect”, the previous ban also allowed companies with more than 50 workers to designate a smoking room for their employees. ... Ban on smoking in indoor public places from Sept. 1 As of Wednesday, September 1 there will be a blanket ban on smoking in all indoor public areas throughout Greece, with stiff fines for transgressors. The ban applies equally to work places and recreational venues, without the option of a special smoking area, except in the case of casinos and recreational venues larger than 300 square metres playing live music. For the last two categories, there will be an eight-month transitional period and the full ban will begin to apply from June 1, 2011. Under the new law, private individuals that flout the smoking ban face fines ranging from 50-500 euros, while companies found to be tolerating smoking on their premises can be fined between 500 and 10,000 euros. The details of the smoking ban were outlined in a health ministry circular issued on Monday, with restaurateurs and club owners objecting to the timing that they said will be a further knock to a sector already struggling to cope with a decline in turnover of as much as 25 percent. Prime Minister George Papandreou on Tuesday received the "anti-smoking committee, along with the relevant health minister, whom he congratulated for what he called their "exceptional work". The committee and Health Minister Mariliza Xenoyiannakopoulou visited the premier a day ahead of a nation-wide ban of smoking in public indoor areas, with the latest ban now accompanied by fines against proprietors and even individuals. Greece to crack down -- again -- on die-hard smokers ATHENS — Greece is cracking down on its die-hard smokers for the second time in just over a year in a new bid to stamp out the habit in Europe's most nicotine-addicted nation. New legislation effective from Wednesday bans smoking in all public spaces except casinos and large music halls which have a nine-month extension to June. Customers who flout the law will be liable to fines from 50 to 500 euros (64 to 640 dollars) while business operators risk tougher penalties of 500 to 10,000 euros and repeat offenders could have their licenses revoked. "This is matter of public health, not a witch-hunt," Health Minister Mariliza Xenoyannakopoulou told a news conference on Monday, adding that her services sought to cooperate with establishments on the issue. A similar ban had been imposed by the previous government last July -- the third crackdown in a decade -- but controls loosened after elections were called a few months later. Laws dating to the 19th century have banned smoking in public offices and shops in Greece but this has not kept generations from lighting up. Forty percent of Greeks are smokers and go through an average of eight cigarettes per day, Ta Nea daily reported on Monday ... Heavier fines for smokers VIDEO: Greece fails on stamping out smoking Much trumpeted legislation aimed at stamping out smoking in Greece, Europe's most tobacco addicted nation, has been declared a failure by health campaigners. A lack of enforcement and widespread public defiance is being blamed for the Greeks' inability to conform to European standards. As the BBC's Malcolm Brabant reports, Greek rebelliousness is one of the biggest obstacles. ... Greece's smoking ban not working, say officials Athens - More than six months after Greece introduced a ban on smoking in public places, officials were conceding that the third attempt to stamp out the habit is failing, it was reported Friday. Greece, one of the last bastions of smoking in the European Union, introduced a ban on smoking in public places on July 1. According to a report in the Greek daily Kathimerini, despite awareness campaigns that were initially well received by the public in the countdown to the ban, the necessary reforms have not been carried out to ensure that the restrictions are enforced. ... Many laws but little adherence Of course we have plenty of very strict laws in Greece, there has never been a problem on that count. When it comes to enforcing them, though, it is a completely different matter. A good example of this paradox is the smoking ban, which was supposed to go into effect last year. The intention was to prohibit smoking in most indoor public spaces, or at least those that had not applied for a special license. The publicity campaign to promote this measure cost a good chunk of money and nobody could claim not to know about the ban, as it was discussed far and wide. Since then, however, nothing appears to have changed. People continue to smoke at will and it seems that no one is interested in imposing the law. ... Smoking ban 'not working' More than six months after smoking restrictions were applied in public spaces, in line with European Union legislation, little has changed, authorities have told Kathimerini. Although an awareness campaign was well received by the public in the countdown to the July 1 ban, the necessary reforms have not been carried out to ensure that the restrictions are enforced. As a result, smoking continues in most bars and cafes, public offices and hospitals, according to Panayiotis Behrakis, the head of a steering committee set up to oversee the implementation of the restrictions. “The whole country is smoking,” he said. ... Smoking ban is re-examined The ban on smoking in most bars and cafes is not being adhered to nor applied properly, the government said yesterday, adding that it is launching a review of the law that was passed earlier this year after pressure from the European Union. Health Minister Mariliza Xenogiannakopoulou said that she had noted “great gaps in the application of the smoking ban” and would be re-examining the legal framework supporting it. At the end of last month, it was revealed that state inspectors had received more than 2,500 complaints about people violating the ban. It also emerged that some 2,200 cafe and bar owners in Athens had applied to turn their venues into all-smoking establishments but that none of the paperwork had been processed by authorities, in most cases because the applications were incomplete. Xenogiannakopoulou said she wants to address such problems. ... Greek Casinos Self-Regulate To Outrun Smoking Ban Greece’s casinos have dodged inclusion in a smoking ban that came into force last week, but the chief executive of two of the country’s largest casinos says they are nevertheless preparing for tougher restrictions to be implemented. ... Smoking controls come into effect Cafes and restaurants yesterday scrambled to prepare for the introduction of European Union-dictated smoking restrictions as the Health Ministry issued the official decision explaining their obligations at the eleventh hour. The ministry circulated the text of the decision to all municipal and prefectural authorities which have been deluged with queries from owners of bars and nightspots unclear about the changes they need to make to their premises. Ministry officials also announced the creation of a team of inspectors whose responsibility it will be to patrol bars and restaurants and determine whether the new smoking restrictions are being adhered to or not. ... Greece Bids To Stamp Out Smoking In Public With New Law Greece, Europe's heaviest-smoking nation, will introduce a tobacco ban in public places on July 1, its third attempt in a decade to stamp out the country's love affair with cigarettes. However, critics fear loopholes in the legislation and its unpopularity mean it could prove just as ineffective as previous antismoking bids. Greece lags behind many of its European peers who have outlawed smoking in public places in recent years. However, Avramopoulos is convinced Greece can now catch up, declaring: "The moment of truth has arrived, this ban aims to bring a change that will revolutionize people's outlook." ... Last-minute reprieve for offices ahead of Greek smoking ban Athens - Greece's health minister Friday announced last- minute exemptions for some offices and casinos, ahead of a public smoking ban to due come into force next week. The Greeks are considered one of the last bastions of smoking in the EU, and the proposed ban has already run into considerable opposition. Initially, minister Dimitris Avramopoulos had said authorities will enforce without exception smoking restrictions in public places, including offices, restaurants and bars as of July 1. ... Greece to apply smoking ban from July 1 Greece, Europe's heaviest smoking nation, will try to kick the habit by banning tobacco in indoor public places from July 1, but many doubt the ban will work. Greece breaks all European records with more than 40 percent of the population smoking and six out of ten being exposed to smoking at work, according to a European Union poll. "We can't take it any more. Where I work there are so many smokers," 55-year-old Elisavet Vasileiadou told Reuters. "I hope the ban will be implemented for the sake of our health, but I think it will be difficult," said Vasileiadou, a shoe-store employee in central Athens. "It's not easy to tame Greeks, they'll find a way out." ... Greece Launches Anti-Smoking Campaign Ahead of July Ban Athens - Greece, one of Europe's heaviest smoking nations, on Wednesday launched a six month anti-smoking campaign ahead of a ban outlawing smoking in most public places from July 1. The new ban should have a big impact in a nation where nearly 45 per cent of the adult population smokes, and where smoking in offices and cafes is seen as both traditional and acceptable. ... Survey Find Greece has EU's Highest Smoking Rate A new European Commission study finds that 30 percent of Europeans over the age of 16 admit to smoking, with Greece topping the list as the country with the highest percentage of smokers. The majority of the 26,500 Europeans polled in the study that reported smoking said they did so regularly, with only 5 percent calling themselves occasional smokers, according to Eurobarometer pollsters. Greece had the highest percentage of smokers, at 42 percent, followed by Bulgaria at 39 percent and Latvia at 37 percent. At the lower end of the scale, just 25 percent of Swedes and 22 percent of Slovaks reported smoking. ... Greece Pushes to Move Ahead Smoking Ban by Summer Athens - Greece's health ministry is pushing to implement a ban outlawing smoking in all public places, including restaurants, bars and offices by the summer - a half year earlier than required by law. The new law does not require implementation until January 1, 2010. ... |