Last week, when I was on the BBC Radio Wales phone-in, I was struck by a contribution from Brendan, a retired GP.
Brendan (a smoker) was extremely critical of the British Medical Association and its extreme anti-tobacco agenda. The gist of what he was saying was that the BMA is not only wrong to call for a ban on smoking in all private vehicles, but the union's behaviour could seriously damage the doctor-patient relationship.
I supported Brendan's common sense attitude and said that, in my experience, he was far more representative of most GPs than the organisation that claims to represent them.
I have never been lectured by my GP (I've had several over the years), even though I am significantly overweight and enjoy more than the "recommended" number of units of alcohol each week. On the rare occasion a GP (or dentist) asks me what I do for a living ("I run a smokers' lobby group"), they invariably smile, pat me on the head and tell me to run along. (OK, I made the last bit up, but it's never been an issue.)
Anyway, Brendan isn't the only doctor who has queried the BMA in the past week. An oncologist called Anne took part in another programme I was on and she too took issue with them. (Update: Frank Davis has the transcript here. Scroll down to near the bottom.)
PS. Patrick Hayes, who writes for Spiked, The Free Society and the Huffington Post speaks for many of us, I think, when he asks: After the dodgy smoking in cars stat, how can the BMA be trusted?.