Canarian experts back smoking ban

Canarian health experts have supported the Spanish government’s proposal to ban smoking on outdoor restaurant and bar terraces.

Although no law is planned yet, the ban is part of anti-tobacco legislation Spanish government which will also prohibit smoking on beaches, and in private cars containing children or pregnant women. 

Pedro Cabrera, President of the professional body for doctors in Las Palmas, has supported a future ban on the grounds that 80% of Spaniards do not smoke and should be protected from other people’s smoke. He also points out that children are allowed on terraces and should not be exposed to smoking. 54,000 people die as a direct r4esult of smoking-related illnesses in Spain each year.

Cabrera also called for higher taxes and duties on tobacco, pointing out that the Canaries has the cheapest tobacco in Spain. A packet of 20 cigarettes that costs an average of €4.5 in Spain (and £14.60 in the UK) currently costs around €3 in the Canaries.