Eerste rookloze pub al failliet
Een pub die al een half jaar vóór de introductie van het rookverbod in Engeland op de rookloze toer ging is, twee weken na de invoering van het rookverbod, failliet gegaan. De rokende bezoekers bleven weg en werden niet vervangen door niet-rokers.
“Op de korte termijn zal dit totale rookverbod een ramp zijn voor veel pubs”, concludeert de eigenaar.
Deejay, 26, said: “Basically, we ran out of customers. We introduced a smoking ban in February, we’d had it refurbished and it was looking nice.
“People started to go to other pubs that hadn’t introduced the smoking ban yet and then when it came in July they stopped coming in altogether.
“A lot of pubs will be struggling because of the ban. I’m personally gutted.
“I still think it’s a good idea but one that people will have to get used to and in the short term it will spell disaster for many pubs.
“People are staying at home, buying cheap booze from the supermarkets and sitting with their friends smoking their heads off.
“But I think there will come a point when they won’t want to sit in and will start going out again, especially as Christmas approaches.”
Approximately 800 people a year under 65 die in Wigan because of smoking. There are 80,000 smokers living in Wigan, their numbers have fallen in three years from 29% to 25%.
