I have been asked to take part in a television programme about the July 1 smoking ban in public places.
I shall be arguing (obviiously to no avail) against the overall ban and in favour of selective smoking areas.

The cause may be lost, but the principle remains: that of personal choice.
The smoking ban will change the pub clulture of a city like Liverpool. In Dublin, some of the most popular pubs reported a 15 per cent fall-off in business. Folk were merely going to supermarkets for their booze and then going home to drink.
In Liverpool, the ban can be more readily accommodated by pubs like Rigby's (with its outside courtyard) and the Cross Keys (with its roof garden).
But what does the future hold for places like The Globe and The Hole In The Wall, where there is no extra space to create outdoor or lean-to faclities?
The legislation, incidentally, does not consider the individual customer needs: it anticipates European enforcement of employment law, which insists that firms have a responsibility for the health of their staff.
Technically, this prohibits bar staff etc working in any enclosed place where smokiong occurs. Hence also the ban even in private clubs.
More nanny nonsense. Next we'll be forbidding miners to go down mines - in case they get dirty hands and faces.

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