Mr Eden said the country would begin debating an anti-smoking bill in September but that time has come and gone with no word on a new date.

A source close to the Government-appointed Tobacco Legislation Steering Committee told Cayman Net News the legislation is in the draft stage and would go before the Assembly next year.

The individual said the document is still to be reviewed by the Legal Department of Government.

While two other sister British Overseas Territories and the UK itself, have passed laws banning tobacco smoking in public places, the Cayman Islands seemed stalled on the issue.

However, some hotels, bars, restaurants and businesses have instituted their own smoking ban at the request of their customers.

General Manager of the Cayman Islands Cancer Society, Christine Sanders, said her organisation was determined to have a smoking ban in Cayman.

“The potential global pandemic that could occur in the next 15 years as a result of tobacco use as well as the current and future economic burden of tobacco use, means that the issue of tobacco control needs to be addressed sooner rather than later,” she said.

Bermuda and the British Virgin Islands have passed legislations outlawing smoking in public places.
The BVI parliament on 15 November unanimously approved the bill, setting a six-month grace period for smokers to get inline, while Bermuda’s non-smoking law took effect two months ago.

In a previous interview, Director of Public Health, Dr Kiran Kumar, told Net News the local tobacco laws were inadequate.

“In the Cayman Islands, local legislation on tobacco only addresses the advertising of tobacco products to a limited extent,” he said.

The existing law is called the Tobacco Products and Intoxication Liquor Advertising Law.

According to the legislation, health warnings must be placed on tobacco products and no tobacco advertisement on cinema screens.

In Bermuda, non-smokers can now breathe some ‘fresh air’ of relief as a smoke-free environment is guaranteed in public places which became effective in October 2006.

Bermuda’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr John Cann, said it was too early to work out the impact the new measure was having on cigarette smokers.

He said, however, there was a definite shift in the attitude of non-smokers following the smoking ban.

The ban is in effect for hotels, bars, restaurants, workplaces, shops and theatres.

Former Health Minister, Patrice Minors, who was instrumental is passing the new legislation, said Bermuda was following the lead of the World Trade Organization in seeking to protect the rights of non-smokers not to suffer the effects of second-hand smoke.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said tobacco is the second major cause of death in the world and is responsible for one in every ten adult deaths worldwide.

Tobacco-related deaths could mount to ten million each year by 2020, the WHO said. About 650 million people smoke – half will eventually be killed.

The WHO said that tobacco users are also less productive while they are alive due to increased sickness.

A 1994 report estimated that the use of tobacco resulted in an annual global net loss of US$200 thousand million, a third of this loss being in developing countries.

In addition to the high public health costs of treating tobacco-caused diseases, tobacco kills people at the height of their productivity, depriving families of breadwinners and nations of a healthy workforce.

The WHO said tobacco and poverty are inextricably linked with many studies showing that in the poorest homes in some low-income countries as much as 10 percent of total household expenditure is on tobacco.

Addressing the question of having shared areas with smoking and non-smoking sections, Mrs Minors used a swimming pool analogy to strengthen her backing for a complete ban.

“Some may say that shared smoking and non-smoking areas will solve the problem of second hand smoke. Well, I found a humorous analogy that speaks to this and that is — shared smoking and non-smoking areas is like having a urinating and non-urinating section of a (swimming) pool,” she said.

In the BVI, the law seeks new restrictions on the sale and marketing of cigarettes with a strong warning not to target the youth in tobacco advertising.

“The concern for public health obviously outweighs any of the other concerns,” said Ronnie Skelton, the British territory’s Minister of Health and Social Development.

Puerto Rico, Germany, Ireland and some US States are among the growing number of countries taking a stance against people who light up in public and put others at risk.