Turkey says not to backtrack on smoking ban

Turkey's health minister said Wednesday government had no plans to soften country's smoking ban.

In July 2009, Turkey launched a new phase of smoking ban, extending the prohibition to all indoor areas including cafes, bars and restaurants.

At his meeting with World Health Organization (WHO) official Armando Peruga, Recep Akdag was asked whether or not government planned to retreat from the ban.

Akdag said, "Turkish people are happy with this ban. There will be no amendments to the law as long as people stand by the Health Ministry."

Restaurant owners have been complaining about the ban and they had demands from the government to soften it.

However, WHO official Peruga said that the number of smokers declined after public smoking ban and that restaurants increased their profits by 5 percent since the ban, despite economic crisis.

Peruga, the WHO Tobacco-Free Initiative's Acting Coordinator for National Capacity Building, said Turkey was a model country for tobacco control, adding that he saw media reports claiming that Spanish model was the best.

On the contrary, he said, Spanish authorities had intention to copy Turkey's implementations.

Spanish government plans to extend smoking ban to bars and enclosed public spaces, a move which will bring the country in line with other Western European countries, and end its reputation as one of the last smokers' paradise in the region.

/World Bulletin/