Suffolk pub landlords welcome beer garden smoking ban U-turn

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said MPs reflected on the “challenges facing UK hospitality today” as he explained the government’s decision not to go ahead with a ban on smoking in pub gardens or outside areas at bars and restaurants.

Mr Streeting said the government opted not to go ahead with the ban following discussions with the hospitality sector.

Duncan Tuhey, licensee at the Prince of Wales pub in Sudbury, said: "It is a big positive because it is an area that is required for smokers.

"If it were to be banned it would absolutely deter people, I would have thought, because you're being dictated to on what you can and can't do." 

Duncan Tuhey, landlord of the Prince of Wales pub in Sudbury (Image: Prince of Wales Pub) He explained the beer garden at The Prince of Wales is well-used by his patrons.

"We have got quite a large smoking area which is used all through the summer and winter so you're looking at 20% to 30% of people using it," he said.

"Without that, where else would they go? It would mean that they would be standing on corners and upsetting neighbours, rather than in areas made for them.

"Pubs need all the help they can get at the moment, so this is welcome," he added.

Meanwhile Matt Coleman, who runs The Swan in Needham Market, said they have two outdoor spaces at the pub and have already created a smoking and non-smoking section to allow for people's preferences. 

He said he was "kind of in-between" about the idea of the ban, but that some patrons might have been deterred had it gone ahead. 

Matt Coleman and Ysobel Hellon-Warwick outside The Swan in Needham Market (Image: Charlotte Bond) "I remember when the inside smoking ban came in, I was working in a nightclub at the time, and it massively affected trade back then," he said.

"I do feel like there has been a shift in behaviour with smoking and it is more towards vaping now and the percentage of people that smoke has come down.

"For us I think it would be the older generation who have always smoked and haven't stopped - it might stop them coming or push them somewhere else like the street or out the front, which could also cause problems." 

He added that if a ban had been approved he would assume pubs would have to police those in beer gardens and maybe pay fines if patrons were caught flouting the rules, potentially leading to further expenses for the industry. 

Steve Wells, who is a partner a The Shamrock pub in Ipswich, said he is 'pleased' that the plan has been withdrawn. 

Steve Wells (right) pictured outside The Shamrock (Image: Tom Cann) "My greatest concerns about the ban is that it would only really achieve two things. One - deter people from gathering in pubs because everywhere is non-smoking and, like it or not it, is quite a social activity for those that do it.

"Two - if they did come into bars and they weren't allowed to let them smoke in the beer garden, they would still smoke but on the streets meaning people going about their business end up walking through plumes of smoke.

"It seemed a short-sighted idea which was part of the government telling people how to live their lives."