Smoking Ban.....

In Blackpool, there is a small back street bar called the "Crazy Scots Fun Palace", essentially a Scottish bar, but more often filled with sports fans of all types not just your average jock on holiday.

The landlord/owner of this bar has declared that from Sunday 1st July he and his regulars will be holding a "Smoke In", the bar will not close and he will defy the Smoking Ban.

A regular at the bar who does not wish to be named has stated, "We are all really pissed off about this ban, if it was banned in food outlets we could understand, but to take the choice away from ordinary folks who want a pint and a beer is f**king out of order! and the government can go and kiss my Lilly white arse!!"

He went on to mention that he believed the police were not going to police the ban, and as no-one had seen fit to give the supposed council snoopers, powers of detention or arrest, "FFS you don't even have to give your name to the fuckers, so they canny fine you!" His mates/ fellow drinkers went on to say, "Good on the landlord for standing up for the working mans rights to have a beer and a fag!"
The landlord was unavailable for comment, but a member of the bar staff stated, "that he had the intention if fined (£2500.00) of not paying it, and taking it as far as he could through the courts! Anyway I doubt any fucker would get through the door with a camera! Or at least not be able to develop anything other than shots of his own bowels!"

It remains to be seen whether Blackpool Council will be sending in enforcement officers into, what could be a volatile and possibly hostile bar, aimed at making a stand against this law, that is hated by smokers. After all when smokers were asked to stop smoking in parts of pubs set aside for non smokers, they had no problem with complying, but it seems non smokers are not so magnanimous!

This maybe the start of a more concerted effort by publicans to change the law, even Dave West, Millionaire Nightclub owner, has hired Cherie Blair QC, in order to mount a legal challenge against the smoking ban!

As a smoker who has tried and failed to stop smoking in the past, I can see no reason for not allowing the Landlords to decide whether they wanted a smoking or non smoking pub. But then the government couldn't allow that, as that would have left very few opting for a non smoking pub.