27/04/2013 00:00
TW
0
Joan Collins BETWEEN 70 and 80 percent of bars and restaurants more than 100 square metres in size have already been adapted to comply with the Anti-tobacco law which calls for physically separate areas in bars of this size. These establishments have stepped up the work in the last few months so that they would be finished for the high tourist season. The work was needed because, according to the national Anti-tobacco law which came into force on January 1 this year, the smoking and non-smoking areas have to be physically separated. The completion of the work in time for the high season means that these establishments are well ahead of the deadline of 8 months which the law allows for the changes. Francisco Martinez, Vicepresident of the Catering section of the CAEB (the Confederation of Business Associations), was speaking yesterday. He added that, of all the establishments that have to section off an area of not more than 30 square metres exclusively for smokers before October, “approximately half of them do not need any work thanks to the original structure of the site with separate parts”. As for the other half, more than 40 percent have finished the work with a view to the massive influx of tourists during the Summer months. He concluded that the bars which have still not started the work are “few” and those which, in all probability, “will not have finished them before the deadline fixed by the law” are also few in number. He highlighted the fact that many bars and restaurants on the islands have large terraces which will make it easy to comply with the law in places which they haven't adapted yet, because “they will choose to ban smoking inside”, thus solving the necessity to separate the areas.





COLD WEATHER
“The problems will come in Winter”, said Martinez, “when the cold weather empties the terraces and the urgency to have the work done will be impressed on the bar and restaurant owners”. Nevertheless, Martinez added, no bar or restaurant of more than 100 square metres will risk not complying with the law, because if they are reported they could be fined up to 60'000 euros. Even so, the Vicepresident underlined the fact that it is “impossible” to generalise because every establishment is independent in deciding how to deal with the law. On the other hand, he explained that restaurant owners on the islands are still asking the Balearic Government to extend the deadline for the completion of the work to two years. Since the law came into effect on January 1 the Balearic Minister for Health and Consumer Affairs, Aina Castillo, has sent three letters to her opposite number in Madrid, Helena Salgado, to ask for this extension, “but she has not received a reply”, he complained. Martinez also said that they were watching what was happening in other autonomous regions which, like the Balearics, have also demanded an extension to the deadline, such as Andalucia, Madrid, or the Valencia region, which “will be as equally affected as the islands”. He also pointed out that the distinction that the national law makes between bars and restaurants of more than 100 metres and those which are smaller, has produced “by magic” bars and restaurants which have “drastically” reduced the number of square metres available to customers. “Making the office, toilets and kitchen bigger means that they can reduce the area for customers to less than 100 square metres and therefore will not need to do the work”. “It is logical for them to do this small subterfuge if, after doing costly work, they can only allow smoking in a space smaller than 30 square metres”, said Martinez. He went on to say that he considered that customers were becoming “increasingly aware” of the necessity to respect non-smokers, which is something that “didn't happen to such an extent” when the Balearic anti-tobacco law came into force on July 10 2005. The Vicepresident said that he doesn't think that the national Government will submit to having its arm twisted and extend the deadline for the reforms, although he said that in the eighth meeting which the Follow Up Commission (of the Antitobacco law) will have with Castillo in June, “this will be the thing that we will most insist on”.