A BAN on smoking at Austrian bars and restaurants takes effect today, making it one of the last European countries to stub out the habit in indoor public places after years of protracted debate and protests.

Parliamentarians approved the ban in July in a bid to rid Austria of its status as the “ashtray of Europe”. Only members from the far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) opposed the measure.

A quarter of the country’s 8.8 million inhabitants smoke, exceeding the European average of 18%, but calls for a ban dated back more than a decade.

FPOe – formerly led by a keen smoker – had stymied a previous attempt to ban smoking at pubs and restaurants when it entered the government in December 2017.

That prompted a backlash from large sections of the public, as well as the national medical association, which organised a petition in favour of the ban. It was signed by almost 900,000 people, or about 14% of voters.

However, in May, FPOe left the government under the shadow of a corruption scandal, paving the way for the proposal to be voted on again in Parliament.

Up till now, smoking had been legal at bars and restaurants larger than 50 sq m, as long as it was done in a separate area – although this rule was not always rigidly implemented.

No separate area was necessary in smaller establishments if the owner was happy to allow smoking on the premises.

However, a growing number of restaurants and cafes had already banned smoking of their own accord. – AFP, November 1, 2019.