The European Commission is considering imposing a ban in smoking in pubs, restaurants and workplaces across the EU, similar to the ban which becomes effective in Ireland in January.
The Commission would use worker safety legislation to ban smoking in cafes, bars and restaurants throughout the 15-member European Union, officials said on today.
A series of measures to crack down on smoking, including a ban on tobacco advertising and the need to have graphic images of diseased lungs and other organs, on cigarette packets, have already been launched.
EU Health Commissioner Mr David Byrne was quoted by the EUpolitix website as saying he could also launch a workplace ban.
Mr Thorsten Muench, a spokesman for Employment and Social Welfare Commissioner Anna Diamantopoulou, who would also be involved in the drafting of such rules, confirmed the EU executive was looking into such measures.
"It's at a very early stage, no decisions have been taken," he told a news conference.
The Commision does not have any legal competence to ban smoking in bars and restaurants, but has previously asked member states to pass laws to protect against exposure to tobacco in places of work, closed public spaces and public transport.
Mr Byrne and Ms Diamantopoulou are likely to face an uphill struggle to ban smoking in the EU, especially in the 10 mostly eastern European countries which will join the bloc in May and where cigarette consumption is far higher than the EU average.
The EU's biggest state, Germany, has also gone to the European Court of Justice, to try to overturn the ban on tobacco advertising on radio, the Internet and in newspapers.