A new opinion poll has shown that most people in England would back a comprehensive smoking ban, without exemptions, matching the legislation planned for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The survey, commissioned by Cancer Research UK and Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), found that 72 per cent of Britons backed legislation to make all workplaces, including pubs and bars, smoke-free.
The British government is planning to outlaw smoking in the majority of workplaces in England by the summer of 2007, but with exemptions for private members' clubs and pubs and bars not serving food. Comprehensive bans, without any exemptions, are planned for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Cancer Research UK and Ash said the poll of 3,600 people found that people in each nation backed a law banning smoking in all workplaces. The figure for those in England who would support such a ban stood at 71 per cent, with 71 per cent also in favour in Scotland, 70 per cent in Wales and 78 per cent in Northern Ireland.
When asked specifically whether smoking should be banned in pubs and bars, 67 per cent across the UK as a whole supported such a move. In England support stood at 66 per cent, 70 per cent in Scotland, 67 per cent in Wales and 74 per cent in Northern Ireland.
The figure for England was up from 51 per cent compared with another poll carried out last year. The British government has persistently defended its plans for a partial ban in England despite widespread disapproval from charities and the medical profession.
PA