Sir, - For years my nostrils, my lungs, my body in general have been assailed by the greatest curse to human health imaginable. I refer to cigarette smoking. The young, the old, the rich, the poor, public representatives and the medical profession have been well educated about the adverse effects of smoking. People who smoke (because of a self-inflicted habit) monopolise a huge proportion of the resources of our medical services.As a non-smoker and taxpayer I resent the recent introduction of a drug, designed to help kick a filthy habit, available free to medical card patients and partially refundable on the drug subsidy scheme. A smoker on 20 cigarettes a day spends over £115 a month. The Government now intends to expend £140 per month of our taxes on those who constitute a threat to our health.I know, Mr Martin, that freebies are abused and they will not entice the vast majority off the dreaded weed. Please, Minister, grasp the nettle and introduce a range of repressive anti-smoking measures. Ban smoking in all public buildings and in all amenity areas where people congregate. Penalise smokers who fail to take medical advice - e.g., defer their treatment of smoking-related illnesses, thereby allowing non-smokers to benefit from opportunities for earlier treatment.Prohibit people who smoke from working in any area of the health service. The suicidal intent of smokers should not affect my health or my pocket. - Yours, etc.,Sally O'Brien, Clynagh, Carraroe, Co Galway.