Legal advice: Smoke ban starts to hit trade in Scotland

News from Scotland was gloomy last week, with the trade reporting a drop in alcohol sales of over 10 per cent since the introduction of the ban on March 26 - and ministers were warned that the worst may be still to come, because the full effects will not be felt until the winter months.

The Scottish Licensed Trade Association survey, conducted among 365 of the 5,000 establishments across Scotland, found that the ban has hit regulars particularly hard, with 46 per cent of licensees reporting a drop in visits by regulars and only five per cent reporting an increase.

To make matters worse, any anticipated new business from non-smokers has failed to materialise.

If the survey is to be believed, 20 per cent of licensees have reported more new customers or more frequent business but 17 per cent have reported fewer.

Interestingly, even food sales dropped, by some three per cent.

However, the Scottish health minister refused to accept the findings, claiming that the small size of the sample meant that it was not representative of the trade as a whole.

At the same time Diageo, owner of Guinness, has reported in its last 12 months' figures, a drop of eight per cent in sales of the black stuff in Ireland. The company cited the

smoking ban as one reason for the downturn (Guinness being more suited to consumption in pubs than at home), but "does not see this as a major long-term problem".

No doubt the directors have reached this decision in light of the wide diversity of their brands. Publicans in Ireland, Scotland and England may not share their sentiments.