On Monday, 30 April 2007 a new law was introduced to give everyone in Northern Ireland space to breathe.
Since Monday 30 April 2007 it is against the law to smoke in enclosed and substantially enclosed workplaces and public places, and in certain vehicles. The introduction of this law, which has received overwhelming support across Northern Ireland, protects workers and the public from the serious health effects of second-hand smoke.
This website, along with a high profile advertising campaign and widely distributed information leaflet, provides useful information about the smoke-free law and how it affects you. The Smoking (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 (the Order) was made on 14 November 2006.
A smoke-free legislation guidance document for workplaces and organisations is available to download in English or Irish.
A sample smoke-free policy can be downloaded here.
The final regulations can be viewed here.
You can use the menu on the left to see all the information available. Key sections include:
- Smoke-free legislation guidance document in English or Irish.
- No-smoking signage (examples of the no-smoking signs which comply with the smoke-free legislation can be downloaded here)
- Questions and answers
- Second-hand smoke and health
- Smoke-free legislation information leaflet (translations of the information leaflet are available as PDF files in Portuguese, Slovak, Polish, Lithuanian, Urdu, Russian, Complex Chinese and Latvian).
Smoke-free legislation guidance information and no-smoking signs were sent to workplaces across Northern Ireland through the environmental health departments of local district councils.