10 years on: Smoking ban success

Smokers smoked their last cigarettes in Rotorua's bars 10 years ago. Photo / File

There was heated debate and even "hatred" when it was introduced, but a decade later the ban on smoking in pubs has become widely accepted, say those in the industry.

Ten years ago today the Smokefree Environments Amendments Act came into effect forcing smokers in bars and other workplaces outside. The bill was sponsored by then Rotorua MP Steve Chadwick, now the city's mayor, who says the law change was one of the "most profound" things she had been involved with.

At the time it was believed by some to be the death knell for pubs.

But Pig & Whistle owner Gregg Brown said while income dropped for the first 12 months after the law change his bar had experienced growth every year since and the environment was more welcoming.

"It's not even a factor any more," Mr Brown said.

"It's so much nicer having a non-smoking environment, especially for the workers. For me having to endure secondhand smoke in the work environment was never going to be good for my health in the long term. The other upside is you're not burning holes in your carpet and there's no nicotine stains on your ceiling ..."

Rotorua RSA president John Treanor said the change had been "well received" by its members who now realised the benefits which are "being able to socialise without having to worry about cigarette smoke or the smell on your clothes when you get home".

Mrs Chadwick said the 12 months between the bill passing in Parliament to it being enforced helped people get used to the idea.

"Like any public health shift it was always going to be a long journey and we're still on it," she said.

"It certainly wasn't an easy journey to get the legislation through and there is now a sense of satisfaction - I can now say this was one of the most profound things that I can say I had something to do with.

"Society is accepting the change, smoking is now seen as a health issue rather than in the past when people saw it simply as a right."

She said there was compliance with the new law, a reaction she thought was astonishing. "And I think that it came down to the fact that we did give it time. There was some heated debate and there was hatred but slowly, society accepted we had to change."

The bill was initially introduced by Tukuroirangi Morgan in the 1990s and eventually sponsored by Mrs Chadwick. MPs had a conscience vote on the issue, deciding 68 to 52 in favour of the bill.