Bercow blasts “irreverent” House on first reading of Brabin bill
Thursday, January 31, 2019 at 11:11 Update to Tuesday’s post about Tracy Brabin’s attempt ‘to prohibit smoking on National Health Service premises’.
Standing up to present the first reading of the Smoking Prohibition (National Health Service Premises) Bill, the former Coronation Street actress, now Labour MP for Batley and Spen, began by saying, tongue-in-cheek:
It is fabulous to have a full House, Mr Speaker. How marvellous.
More seriously, she continued:
This is a Bill that I hope is simple in its terms, can forge the support of as much of this House as possible and can bring us in line with the intentions of the Welsh and Scottish Parliaments - a Bill that would give our NHS trusts the legal back-up to ban smoking on their grounds, which I believe would be to the benefit of patients, visitors, staff, trusts and society more widely.
During my contribution I will try to convince Members of its benefits, but I am not naïve. I am aware that some Members, indeed some commentators too, will have already written this off as some sort of attempted nanny state intervention that will only seek to cruelly deny unwell people the so-called pleasure of smoking a cigarette. I know I have my work cut out for me, so let us start at the beginning.
Although there was indeed a full house - a result of the Brexit debate that was to follow - it seems not everyone was giving the Ten Minute Rule Motion their full attention. At one point Speaker John Bercow was even forced to intervene:
Order. The hon. Lady is a distinguished actress and has a voice that projects, but it seems to me that the House is rather irreverent. What she is saying on this matter should be heard.
You can read Brabin’s full speech here.
The second reading of the bill will take place on Friday March 15. According to one MP I’ve been in contact with:
This Bill isn’t going anywhere so I wouldn’t worry too much. It is the government doing something about it that you need to worry about.
Indeed.
See also: Tracy’s law (Taking Liberties)
Reader Comments (5)
"...Bill that would give our NHS trusts the legal back-up to ban smoking on their grounds, which I believe would be to the benefit of patients, visitors, staff, trusts and society more widely."
In other words, everyone except smokers who she clearly does not consider as patients, visitors, staff or even part of wider society.
So, a second rate former actress has twigged that to win friends in high places, power and a nice littke earner on some committee - just abuse people who smoke and continue otherising, excluding and marginalising them.
Politicians make everyone sick these days with their virtue signalling bigotry.
Nasty woman intent on depriving ordinary people of their human rights.
Smokers are taxpayers. Were it not for tax where would the NHS be?
Brabin was once a scriptwriter for Shameless.
Can you imagine an episode during which any of the characters of that show were hospitalised, and how they would react to this ban?
There is no need to ban smoking outdoors as there is essentially no risk to others from second hand smoke outdoors. But then again there really is none indoors either. It's time to stop the persecution of smokers and remove the societal division that results from relentless anti-smoker propaganda.