As of March 17,
\nsmoking is no longer permitted in enclosed public places in Romania. The
\nrestrictions, introduced nearly two months ago, make smoking illegal in all
\nwork places and public institutions, on public transport and in children’s
\nplayground areas. The ban also covers healthcare and education institutions,
\npublic and private childcare centres, stores, exhibition halls, indoor fairs,
\nshopping areas and market places. The guidelines for implementation, posted on
\nWednesday on the Government’s website, list other areas where smoking is no
\nlonger allowed, such as restaurants, bars, cafes, nightclubs, including those
\nwith air conditioning, casinos, cultural and sports centres, bus or train
\nstations and airports, or in taxis. Electronic cigarettes have also been banned
\nfrom all means of public transport.<\/p>\n
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\n
\n
\n
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Romania is the
\n94th country to introduce a total smoking ban in all indoor public
\nplaces. Smoking is essentially permitted only in outdoor places, courtyards,
\nopen balconies, and kiosks. The only exemptions from the law are the prisoner
\ncells in maximum-security prisons and designated areas in international
\nairports. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Individual
\npersons who break the smoking ban may be fined 20 to 120 euros, while the
\ninstitutions found in breach of the law risk paying fines of 1,100 to 3,300
\neuros. Companies may also receive additional penalties, going as far as having
\ntheir operations suspended, while employees may see their salaries cut or even
\ntheir employment terminated.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
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<\/p>\n
Predictably, the
\nsmoke-free law has divided the public, with smokers claiming they are
\ndiscriminated against. The more outraged of them suggested solutions that would
\nallow them to smoke indoors, such as turning pubs and bars into private
\nmembers’ clubs or into smoking research centres, as some in the UK tried to
\ndo. Some of the smokers however support the idea of smoke-free workplaces,
\nwhile doctors argue that the law will help reduce the frequency of fatal
\ndiseases related to smoking. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Smoking is no longer permitted in all enclosed public places in Romania, with the public being divided over the new law.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":108,"featured_media":67849,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[37738],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-67848","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-today-in-the-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n