Beijing mulls to ban smoking in single occupancy office  

北京：控烟条例未给“领导办公室”开口子

《北京市控制吸烟条例(草案修改稿)》并未给“领导在独立办公室吸烟”留出法规空间。昨日上午，记者从市十四届人大常委会第十三次会议上了解到，草案修改稿二审过程中，最大的争议还是哪类场所属于禁烟范围。[查看全文]

Lawmakers in Beijing reviewed a draft law on smoking control, this time including a ban on smoking in single occupancy offices, for the second time on Thursday.

In the previous draft, smoking was prohibited in public areas, public transport and shared working places. The draft now includes single occupancy offices after controversy over company bosses often being exempt from smoking controls because they have their own office.

Angela Pratta, who is leading the Tobacco Free Initiative of the World Health Organization (WHO) in China, said, "if single occupancy offices are allowed to be exempt from smoke-free laws, then co-workers, cleaning staff and others who have to enter these offices, or who work nearby, would be exposed to second-hand smoke."

"As a result, we removed the word 'shared'," said Wang Qingbin, an associate law professor at the China University of Political Science and Law.

"This move showed how public opinion pushed forward anti-smoking legislation," he said.

MAKING IT MORE FEASIBLE

China is home to over 300 million smokers, with more than one million people dying as a result of tobacco-related illness each year, according to the WHO.

The country signed the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) in 2003 and it became effective in 2006. According to the FCTC, China should have banned smoking in indoor public areas completely by 2011. However, it is not unusual to see smokers puff away in restaurants, bars and hair salons.

Beijing banned smoking in public places such as schools, hospitals, banks and public transport in March 2008, before the Olympics. It also stipulated that in places such as restaurants and parks, there should be specific smoking areas.

However, this rule was poorly implemented. As a result, people expected the new law to be more feasible.