Pressure is building for Parliament to implement a total smoking ban in restaurants and cafés, with the public, restaurateurs and MPs all voting in favour of it in the past few weeks.
According to Mori research for London health authorities, 34% of those questioned said they would dine out more if a smoking ban were in force. Nearly 80% wanted a full ban, and said employees should have the right to work in a smoke-free environment.
MPs have also voted in favour of a ban. In a House of Commons vote on 14 April, on a private member's bill for a ban sponsored by Gareth Thomas, the Labour MP for Harrow West, 117 MPs voted in favour, with only 43 against. Thomas is seeking Government support for legislation next year.
Thomas is also in favour of extending the ban to cover all indoor places, including bars. "But I think we should do it gradually," he said. He pointed out that, following the introduction of a ban in California, in pubs as well as restaurants and bars, trade went up as a result.
Celebrity chef and restaurant owner Aldo Zilli strongly believes a ban should be imposed - and imposed now. "Smoking is disgusting," he said, "but we must all do it together or not at all, because I don't want my customers to go elsewhere."
Restaurateur Michael Meaney has just opened the first of a chain of fine-dining non-smoking restaurants in the Home Counties, with great success. "We are doing twice the business we anticipated, probably double what our predecessors did in the same premises," he said.
From his research among customers, he found that "even smokers are welcoming the smoke-free environment" because there was no one around them to remind them to smoke by lighting up.
Where else is smoking banned?
Many UK buildings are now smoke-free, such as Government offices, hospitals and the premises of many companies. Cambridge has a smoke-free pub, and many bars have non-smoking rooms.
From the beginning of next year, an outright ban on smoking will be introduced in bars and restaurants across the Republic of Ireland. Smokers will be asked to leave bars or face eviction, fines and even arrest.
The Welsh Assembly is also debating whether it will ban smoking in public places.
A smoking ban has already been introduced in New York - in bars, restaurants and hotel lobbies. While some bars and restaurants still appear to have their share of inhaling offenders, that could change shortly. Venues caught with smoking customers face fines starting at $250 (£160) and the loss of their food licences - a number of smaller bars say the fines could shut them down.
The ban in New York has led to friction - a bouncer at an East Village bar was even killed when he told two customers they weren't allowed to smoke inside.
Norway's parliament has voted to make the country among the first in the world to outlaw smoking in bars and restaurants nationwide. Several cities in the USA and Canada have put such rules into effect.
Source: Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine, 1 - 7 May 2003