Wednesday, June 22, 2005

No More Puffs

The word is that smoking is to be banned in all parts of all courthouses shortly (although this may only just squeeze in ahead of a more general Government ban on the foul weed).

I have mixed feelings about this. I am a lifelong non-smoker, but I know that smoking is especially common among the sort of people the court has to deal with. Hanging about in a court as witness, defendant or whatever, is a highly stressful experience, and it seems a little harsh to deprive nicotine addicts of its comforts at such a time. We presently provide a smoking room with decent extractor fans for those waiting, and another for staff and magistrates. Inevitably people will gravitate outside the building for a drag - we shall need to ensure that we keep the magistrates and staff away from the defendants and their supporters. I also have a hunch that our ushers are going to have to scour the street before calling on each case in the future.

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