A bill to strengthen measures against passive smoking was enacted Wednesday after passing the House of Councillors.
A revision of the Health Promotion Law, the legislation prohibits, in principle, smoking inside facilities used by many people. However, exceptions have been made to allow smoking in places such as existing small eating and drinking establishments.
A plenary session of the upper house passed the bill by a majority vote, with support mainly from the ruling parties. The revised law will take full effect in April 2020 ahead the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.
In Japan, whether to take measures against passive smoking at stores and facilities has been left to the discretion of operators. Criticism has mounted that the nation lags behind other countries in taking action.
The revised law totally bans smoking inside such facilities as hospitals, schools and government office buildings. It permits smoking at designated outdoor smoking areas with low foot traffic on the premises of such facilities.
Regarding public transportation, the revised law totally bans smoking on buses, taxis and airplanes. It allows smoking on ships and trains in designated smoking areas that seal in smoke.
Indoor smoking is also prohibited, in principle, at company office buildings, gymnasiums, hotel lobbies and other places where a large number of people come and go. However, designated smoking rooms can be established in such places.
Hotel guest rooms are not covered by the revised law, meaning hotels can establish smoking rooms.
Restaurants and bars can be exempted from the smoking ban depending on criteria such as the size of their business. Specifically, smoking is allowed for the time being at existing small eating and drinking establishments that meet two conditions: They have a customer seating area of 100 square meters or less, and they are run by individuals or small or midsize companies with capital of 50 million yen or less.
However, the revised law requires such establishments to display storefront signs that clearly indicate they allow smoking to notify customers who want to avoid passive smoking. The exemptions were made out of consideration for owners of small restaurants and bars that have found it difficult to immediately set up smoking rooms. As a result, only about 45 percent of all eating and drinking establishments are expected to be subject to the smoking ban.
Smoking is banned inside restaurants and bars operated by major chains and newly opened small establishments. However, such restaurants can establish designated rooms where smoking is allowed. Customers and employees under 20 years old are prohibited from entering establishments where people can smoke and designated smoking rooms.
Heat-not-burn tobacco is increasingly popular, and people are permitted to smoke it in dedicated rooms where the consumption of food and drink is also allowed.
The revised law also includes penalties for violators. Serious violators who smoke in unauthorized areas and fail to comply with administrative guidance or orders face a fine of up to 300,000, yen while facility operators who fail to take steps such as removing ashtrays face a fine of up to 500,000 yen.
On June 27, an ordinance to prevent passive smoking was enacted in Tokyo, which will host the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The ordinance bans smoking at restaurants and bars with at least one employee regardless of factors such as size. It will be enforced in stages.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
