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The Smoking, Health & Social Care (Scotland) Act 2005’s non-smoking provisions took effect on 26^th March 2006¹. Please refer to the The Health Act 2005 for the equivalent English & Welsh legislation.

This document aims to give a very brief highlight of some of the key parts of the Act and its related regulations. For ease, we have broken down this document into the following sections:

• Smoke Free Premises & Vehicles
• Provision of No Smoking Signage
• Offences
• Timescale
• General

Throughout, references to the pertinent legislation have been included as footnotes. The reader is referred to the full text of the Regulations (available here from the Government’s Official UK legislation site) for full details.

Smoke Free Premises & Vehicles

The following became smoke-free upon implementation of the legislation:

• most places of work used by more than one person or where the public might attend²;
• most enclosed public places²; and
• almost all vehicles used in the course of work³.

Provision of No Smoking Signage

No-smoking signs must be provided “in, on or near no-smoking premises so as to be visible to and legible by persons in and persons approaching the premises”⁴ (premises in this context includes smoke-free vehicles).

These no-smoking signs must be at least 85mm in diameter and feature the common graphic representation of a burning cigarette enclosed in a red circle with a red bar across it⁵.

In the case of smoke-free premises other than vehicles, there must be at least one sign that is at least 230×160mm (roughly A5 size). This sign must feature details of where complaints regarding breaches may be made⁵.

The signs for vehicles must also feature details of where complaints regarding breaches may be made⁵.

Offences

The Act contains new offences including the failure to display minimum no smoking signs, failing to prevent smoking in a smoke-free place and, of course, smoking in a no-smoking place. Penalties are most severe for the first two offences with fines extending to fines of up to £2,500⁶.

Timescale

The Smoking, Health & Social Care (Scotland) Act 2005’s non-smoking provisions took effect on 26^th March 2006¹.

General

More information on this subject can be found on the ASH Scotland website.

Click here for the full text of the Act available from the Government’s Official UK legislation site.

Should you wish for any further information under this subject, please feel free to contact us.

Footnotes & References

1. The Prohibition of Smoking in Certain Premises (Scotland) Regulations 2006.
2. Section 3 and Schedule 1 of The Prohibition of Smoking in Certain Premises (Scotland) Regulations 2006.
3. Section 3 and Schedule 1 of The Prohibition of Smoking in Certain Premises (Scotland) Regulations 2006. Please note that the legislation covers vehicles used by more than one employee (whether or not at the same times) and those used by members of the public. In practice this is therefore almost all vehicles used in the course of work.
4. Section 3, paragraph (1) of the Smoking, Health and Social Care (Scotland) Act 2005.
5. Section 2 of The Prohibition of Smoking in Certain Premises (Scotland) Regulations 2006.
6. Section 1, paragraph (4) and section 3, paragraph (4) of the Smoking, Health and Social Care (Scotland) Act 2005.