Outdoor areas being reserved for smokers in Victoria following law change

CUSTOMERS have been banned from eating outside so smokers can light up at Victorian cafes and restaurants, after new cigarette laws were introduced last year.

CUSTOMERS are being banned from eating outside so smokers can puff away with impunity at some cafes and restaurants in Victoria.

Dozens of eateries in Melbourne’s east have transformed outdoor dining areas into smoking safe spaces after new laws banning cigarettes around food came into effect in August 2017.

Venues in Dandenong and Eaton Mall in Oakleigh have been spotted dodging the new law — which says smoking is prohibited where meals are served — and only offering snacks and drinks in outdoor areas where smokers are present.

The move has outraged non-smoking customers and public figures, prompting calls for the new law to be tightened.

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The changes came in last August. Picture: Eugene Hyland

Dandenong Councillor Matthew Kirwan revealed “there is significant concerns about this loophole”.

“The way the legislation was written in Victoria, they have just prohibited outdoor dining areas and turned them into smoking areas,’’ he said.

The issue has also become a bugbear for other venue owners who are following the rules.

They say they are losing clientele who opted for somewhere they could smoke and drink a coffee.

City of Monash councillor Geoff Lake said the issue had become particularly sticky in Oakleigh as some traders with a lack of space could not legally convert their outdoor areas into smoking spaces.

“There are five or six traders in the mall who have changed their serving practices since the new laws came into effect,’ Cr Lake said.

“It is an unfair advantage and the smoke impacts on the rest of the mall.”

City of Monash Cr Geoff Lake says smoking laws are unsatisfactory. Picture: Mark Stewart

Minister for Health, Jill Hennessy says the state government got the “balance right” on smoking laws. Picture: Joe Castro

He labelled current laws as “unsatisfactory”’ and urged the state government to “get back to the drafting table and make the laws they introduced on August 1 more effective”.

He flagged Monash council was now considering introducing new local laws to deal with the issue after receiving little assistance from the state government.

Consultants have recommended new council rules forcing restaurants with tables and chairs on council pavement to serve meals outdoors.

Many anti-smoking advocates warned Victoria’s smoking laws were much more lenient than Queensland and other jurisdictions when they were being debated in parliament last year.

There have also been concerns raised about compliance with no fines yet being handed out in Victoria.

As of March the City of Melbourne had received and investigated 81 complaints but had not issued any tickets.

Minister for Health Jill Hennessy denied there were problems.

“We’ve got the balance right,’’ she said.

“With our laws, businesses have the flexibility they need regarding the use of their outdoor dining areas while diners can eat their meals in a healthier and safer smoke-free environment.”

Rules include:

BANNING smoking in outdoor dining areas while food is served;

ALLOWING cafes to adopt non-smoking policy during lunch and dinner;

DISPLAY no smoking signage in any dining area; and

CREATE four-metre buffer zones or 2.1m blinds to stop smoke drifting from designated smoking areas to eating areas.

SNACKS and drinks can be served in smoking areas.

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