Draft legislation that will dramatically increase the penalties for those found guilty of contravening anti-smoking laws was passed by the National Assembly on Thursday.
The Tobacco Products Control Amendment Bill aims to close loopholes in existing legislation that are ”exploited by the tobacco industry and make prosecutions for contravention … very difficult”.
The Bill amends certain definitions in the original Act, including that of a ”public place”. This now means ”any indoor, enclosed or partially enclosed area, which is open to the public and includes a workplace, a club and a public conveyance”.
The Bill increases — from R200 to R50 000 — the maximum fine that can be imposed on the owner of an establishment who allows smoking in a non-smoking area.
It also increases, from R200 000 to R1-million, the maximum fine for manufacturing tobacco products that do not comply with prescribed standards.
And it raises the maximum fine for an employer found guilty of exposing his employees to tobacco smoke, from R10 000 to R100 000.
The Bill is the first of two pieces of new anti-smoking legislation. A second Bill, which will introduce graphic health warnings on cigarette packets, is expected to be tabled later this year.
Opening debate on the measure in the House, Deputy Health Minister Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge told MPs a 2004 survey had found 31% of men and 11% of women in South Africa were smokers.
”Tobacco consumption has a major negative impact on health, including the depletion of scarce resources available to improve the health of our people.
”According to the Medical Research Council, the cost of maintaining the tobacco survivors in terms of healthcare costs and disability grants is about R2-billion a year,” she said.
Speaking later in the debate, the Democratic Alliance’s Gareth Morgan said research showed existing legislation had been successful in reducing the percentage of smokers in the population from about 25% in 1998 to about 22% in 2004.
”In South Africa, tobacco use is the fourth highest cause of disease and trauma in the population after unsafe sex, violence and alcohol,” he said.
All parties supported the Bill, which will now be sent to the National Council of Provinces for concurrence. — Sapa