Don't you just hate those do-gooders! You can't do this; you can't do that; you can't do anything you enjoy anymore! Take alcohol for example. According to the published definitions, I, along with many of my friends, am a binge drinker. I don't think of myself as a binge drinker. But apparently I am. I don't drink much more than a glass of wine or two during the week, so when I do go out, I'm not used to it and tend to fall over - or asleep. As a nation, we are urged to pigeon-hole ourselves as either responsible drinkers or irresponsible naughty boys and girls, with no room for a middle ground. But, don't we all indulge in the wrong things too much sometimes? Although I don't for one minute condone serious anti-social behaviour, I do believe people should be allowed to enjoy themselves, as long as they're not harming others - or themselves too much for that matter. So what about smoking and how do the smokers feel about the ban? Well, according to research, many of them are in complete favour of the ban, recognising the likely health benefits. However, there are still some voices of dissent. Like advocates of free speech, some smokers believe it's their constitutional right to do what they want, when they want. Others simply want to carry on going down the pub or club for a pint and a fag like they've always done. And anyone not wishing to have smoke blown in their face should just stay away, as they've always had to do. But what about the poor worker who serves your pint and then clears away your empty glass? Don't they have a say? Of course they do, and this was the fundamental reason why the Hooked-on Group became the first restaurant group in the North-East to ban smoking in its restaurants. In 2001, smoking was banned in both Sidney's and Blackfriars Restaurants. Why? Well not, as some thought, primarily because of our customers. No, it was just as much for me and my staff. I absolutely hated returning home with my clothes and hair stinking of cigarette smoke - and my staff did too. I hated the idea that I had passively smoked for much of the night and was concerned by the affect secondhand smoke was having on my staff. And, after all the deliberations, no-one kicked up a fuss. It was almost universally accepted by staff and customers, smokers and non-smokers alike. So is this all a fuss about nothing? Well, in some ways it is. As a child I used to visit my father in his office at work and would invariably find him puffing away. But that doesn't happen these days; it's become socially unacceptable to smoke in an office and, generally speaking, everyone accepts that now. When confronted by a new rule or piece of legislation, we are, as a nation, all generally accepting of what we have to do. So, in the same way that we don't chew and spit tobacco anymore, we'll all get used to the smoking ban pretty quickly and surprisingly readily.
Andy Hook is managing director of The Hooked on Group which owns Blackfriars Restaurant and Café Peel@Dance City. He is also a restaurant consultant and director of Townsley Hook, a property development company.
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