Ban Smoking In London Parks
Smoking in all London parks and at famous landmarks in the city should be banned, former Health Minister Lord Darzi has suggested.
Darzi was appointed by Mayor Boris Johnson to review the health in London, and the cancer surgeon has come back with these radical reforms. The findings will be presented to City Hall later today.
He has suggested that London landmarks such as Trafalgar Square, Parliament Square, and London's Royal Parks should all become none smoking areas.
This would see London follow in the footsteps of New York, which introduced a smoking back in Central Park as well as all of the other parks and beaches in the city back in 2011.
Toronto and Hong Kong have also rolled out similar programmes.
And Darzi believes that London should be leading way on this issue and has received the backing of Chief Medical Officer for England Professor Sally Davies.
Lord Darzi said: "London should lead the way for Britain, and the mayor should lead the way for London by acting to make our public spaces smoke free."
Should these plans go ahead, 20,000 acres of park areas in London would become smoke fee zones - making it the most smoke free city in the world.
Darzi's plans go further and tackle other health issues, as he also suggests a ban on junk food shops near schools and to introduce a minimum price per unit of alcohol to 50p.
These new plans could be rolled out throughout the rest of the country, as local councils are also believed to be looking at these plans.
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