New Car Smoking Laws

[fourteen85]

Leaving aside the ethics of whether a pregnant women should or shouldn't smoke, is an unborn child classed as under 18 for the purposes of this new law, or does a baby have to be born to be classed as ' A person'

[EDDIE51]

Does not apply to unborn children, birth to 18s only.

[fiction-factory]

Yes, the police have enough on their hands trying to deal with offenders (let's face it, they haven't been able to spot most mobile phone use offences by drivers). Establishing ages of passengers is difficult enough. Assessing whether anyone in the car is pregnant would have been unworkable

[fourteen85]

Thanks both

[trt]

Thats a very good point fourteen, and also what would happen, if the driver was a 17yr old not smoking & his friend a passenger was 18yr old was smoking in the car?

[beverleymot]

I read last night that a child is classed as under 18, but a 17 year old driver is allowed to smoke, but if he has his 17yr old friend with him he's not allowed?? Bizarre!

[THECORBYLOON]

The law applies only when there is more than one person in the car and there is someone under age eighteen so the two seventeen-year old scenario is not bizarre.

[DaisyNonna]

How could anyone know if a woman is a couple of weeks pregnant?
Perhaps the next step would be to ban smoking if there is a woman in the car
Oh, I don't smoke

[DaisyNonna]

What police?

[askyourgran]

Sounds like another muppet law, not debated or thought through enough to be enacted. The Police are right to say they cannot spare time for this. It is a health matter, and one of common sense, anyone who smokes near children are stupid selfish people. Having said that, sixty/seventy years ago everyone smoked anywhere they pleased. My father was a smoker as was several other men in the family, there were no warnings in those days of the dangers of smoking and non have suffered. Why don't the Government ban tobacco products and stop smoking altogether, instead of dreaming up unenforceable laws?

[Jackdaw33]

Less time than that, AYG. Until the mid 90s you could still smoke on buses.

[beverleymot]

Corby loon how can a 17yr old be a child in one scenario and an adult in another?!?!

[Jackdaw33]

He is not. A 17 year old driving alone can smoke. If there is another 17 year old in the car he cannot.

[hc4361]

So if I'm driving my 17 year old to college he can smoke but I can't.

[Mamyalynne]

I am a little bemused why people seem more bothered about the 16/17 year olds rather than the 3 or 7 year olds.

[DaisyNonna]

Probably because we are not clear on the law

[fiction-factory]

>So if I'm driving my 17 year old to college he can smoke but I can't.

If you let him, yes. If you don't want him to and he wants a lift on your terms then it's his choice..

[Jackdaw33]

Grey area that one, hc. I would say he couldn't smoke because there is a minor present, albeit himself. Just shows what a daft law this is.

[hc4361]

I'm talking about the legal aspect, FF. I don't have a 17 year old son and I don't smoke.

[fiction-factory]

Ia nswered your question. If the question doesn't apply to you then it would apply to someone who was in that position.
The law has been described I think. In the circumstances you described (if you were someone with a 17 year old son which I now know you aren't) then yes he could smoke and you couldn't

[Jackdaw33]

I can see the £ signs in the lawyers's eyes as they gleefully await the first prosecution under this law.