Thanks to the Irish press, the LVA and even the Irish department of tobacco control, we know that the Irish smoking ban is not a success at all but a fiasco. So let's remind ourselves of what's really happened and the damage as a result of the ban:
Over 1,000 pubs closed and the process is accelerating (even The Times picked up on that one);
25,000 jobs lost;
More smokers than there would have been without a ban and they can't keep track;
More young people smoking;
Gallaghers have announced profits up for two years running;
R.J. Carroll have also announced profits up;
A booming black market; and
Smokeasies, lock-ins and secret back rooms for smokers - likewise lavish outside areas to enable pubs to survive.
For Dr Luke Clancy and ASH Ireland this has posed a conundrum for one hand they want to say their ban is a success but on the other hand they know it isn't so old Luke has been demanding a car smoking ban and yet further increases on the price of cigarettes. We also know that Luke, also known as Nutty Luke, has become so desperate that he's even asked the Little People for help...Only trouble is, he's already had three wishes and someone should have told him that a fourth will be unlucky because that's the way the Leprechauns treat the greedy. Well there you go Lukey boy, don't say you weren't warned!
Blad Tolstoy
