Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Caithfidh mé a rá go bhfuil an-sásamh orm go bhfuil iarrachtaí ar bun le déileáil le fadhb an tobac in Éirinn. Níl rud ar bith níos tábhachtaí ná an tsláinte sa tsaol seo agus sláinte ár bpáisti ach go háirithe. Tá dualgas orainne mar dhaoine a dhéanann dlíthe páistí an náisiúin a chosaint.

This Bill was brought before the Seanad sponsored by Senators John Crown, Jillian van Turnhout and Mark Daly as a Private Members' business proposal in May 2012. It aims to create an offence of smoking in a mechanically propelled vehicle in a public place where a child is present. The initial proposal was to amend the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2002, before it was decided to introduce a stand-alone piece of legislation. The Bill is the result of work undertaken by a wide group of people and I take the opportunity to commend that collective effort.

In this legislation we have found something we can agree on. The measures it contains might not go far enough, but I am satisfied that it is one of a raft of measures. The Minister, Deputy James Reilly, has been addressing these issues in a very focused way for several years. The provisions he brought forward on the plain packaging of tobacco products were recently brought before the Dáil. In tandem, these two legislative measures will save lives. We have, at the same time, seen an intensification of the fight on behalf of the tobacco lobby, as referred to by the Minister, particularly around the issue of plain packaging. Ministers have received letters from business groups in the United States and there were representations by up to 27 MEPs to the Taoiseach earlier this year urging him to drop the proposal. We, as members of the Opposition and spokespersons on health, have also been lobbied in the same way.

Recent years have seen a move to improve legislation and policy around tobacco control, the aim being to protect those who do not smoke from having to deal with second-hand smoke and help the many smokers who express a desire to quit. Included among the latter is my esteemed colleague, Deputy Billy Kelleher. We have seen the introduction of graphic warnings on cigarette packages and bans on tobacco sponsorship, the sale of cigarettes in packets of ten and confectionary that resembles cigarettes. Ireland was the first country in the world to ban smoking in workplaces. We must remain to the fore in this crusade by continuing to improve protections for the general populous and further aiding those who want to quit.

The aim of achieving a tobacco free Ireland by 2025 - defined as a smoking prevalence rate of less than 5% - is to be commended. Tobacco Free Ireland proposed legislation similar to this and also supported a social media campaign focusing on the risks to children from passive smoking in cars. I note that Australia, Canada and England have banned or are in the process of banning smoking in cars where children are present. Will the Minister indicate whether electronic cigarettes will be covered by this legislation? While such devices might have a harm reduction role in established smokers, there is evidence that the emissions they produce may pose a danger to others. We must ensure this Bill is robust enough to protect against any future similar tobacco or nicotine product that would create an unhealthy atmosphere in the enclosed space of a car.

Much of the beneficial effect of this Bill will come from the debate surrounding smoking in enclosed places. Indeed, the public has been made aware of this through media reports of the Bill's passage through the Seanad. Forest Éireann, the Irish smokers' rights group, has criticised these proposals and claimed they will have little impact. I do not agree. Even as we discuss them here, we further contribute to public awareness and knowledge of the dangers involved. International studies in developed countries have shown us the extent of children's exposure to smoke in cars. A 2009 Irish study suggested one in seven children in this country is affected by this type of passive smoking. Extrapolating from that suggests that approximately 170,000 children are affected by this issue. It is therefore imperative that we do something to address the situation.

There is also the question of road safety. A driver reaching for a packet of cigarettes and lighter and lighting up while driving, to say nothing of the distraction of having burning tobacco in one's hand, must amount to an unnecessary risk. This Bill will go some way to denormalise this practice and thereby increase road safety for all users.

Colleagues will recall the impact made by Fionn O'Callaghan, the boy from Wexford who wrote to the Taoiseach to ask him to bring forward legislation in this area. In fact, he has been described as the inspiration for this Bill and Senator Crown brought him to the first briefing on the proposals. In remembering Fionn in this instance, we must think of all those children for whom he was a voice - the 170,000 children whose health may be compromised because of this practice.

For such an important Bill and one that has received such wide-ranging support, it is worrying that it has taken so long to come to this House. It really is an indictment of our system that a Bill that is simple in the grand scheme of legislation and which might have a very positive effect should take this length of time to progress. Ireland has been to the fore in limiting the ill effects of tobacco smoking. We were told that the workplace ban on smoking could not and would not work. As we all know, it has worked very well. We were told it was a case of nanny statism. It is nothing of the kind. It is simply a way to protect those who do not wish to smoke from the well documented harms of smoking and help those who wish to quit. In the case of children, we can no longer accept their being subjected to second-hand smoke and all the dangers it entails.

I do not expect these provisions to impose an additional burden on the Garda. For the most part, I expect the public will accept and adhere to them willingly, even before the Bill passes, in the knowledge of the danger such practice poses. Efforts to effect the elimination of tobacco smoking are only one component of a raft of measures that must be introduced to improve the health of our nation. In my role as spokesperson on health and children for Sinn Féin, I am often confronted with a grave lack of resources and many other basic problems surrounding our health services. This is something that needs to be addressed urgently. We must not, however, forget the role of preventative medicine and preventative legislation.

I am sure these provisions will lead to fewer tobacco-related deaths. Arís eile, b'iontach an rud é dá mbeadh Éire chun tosaigh as tíortha an domhain agus reachtaíocht á thabhairt isteach a thabharfadh cosaint dár bpáistí. I join the Minister, Deputy Kelleher and other colleagues yet to speak in recording my wholehearted support for the passage of the Bill through the House.

See this speech in context