Christchurch residents weigh in on smoke-free debate

Christchurch residents weigh in on smoke-free debate

Remember the days when you could smoke everywhere? Soon you may not be able to smoke anywhere, even outside, on the street, in a major city.

It's happening overseas – smoking bans in central business districts.

Could Christchurch be the first here? And what do the smokers think?

At one end there are those with a civil libertarian bent, and at the other end are those who want the habit stubbed out.

It's an idea mooted by some Melbourne visitors trumpeting the news that their CBD will be smoke-free in two years.

Kyoto, Japan already is; you can only smoke in shelters. Singapore has trialled itty-bitty smoking tents.

Just imagine in New Zealand an entire CBD where smoking is prohibited. What would that mean for the smokers who work there? After all, one in six New Zealanders is a smoking addict.

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