SMOKING POLICY

Smoke-free areas are important as they:

• protect the community from exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke
• make smoking in the community less acceptable - the less people see smoking in public places the less they will tend to think it is okay, rather than harmful
• support people who have quit or are trying to quit

Amendments to the Tobacco Act have extended the areas where smoking is banned across Victoria. Smoke-free areas include:

• entrances to indoor children’s play centres, public hospitals and registered community health centres, and certain Victorian Government buildings
• the grounds of, and entrances to, childcare centres, kindergartens, preschools and primary and secondary schools
• outdoor recreational areas, including playground equipment, skate parks and sporting venues during under-age sporting events
• outdoor areas of public swimming pools
• patrolled beaches
• enclosed workplaces
• train stations, tram-stop platforms and tram and bus shelters
• under-age music or dance

By law, smoking is banned within 10 metres (about two car lengths) of any public outdoor sporting venue during an organised under-18s event.

The ban includes training or practice sessions to prepare for an organised under-age sporting event, and breaks or intervals during the course of the event, training or practice session.

The ban also applies to outdoor dining and drinking areas located within 10 metres of an outdoor sporting venue during an organised under-age sporting event or training session.

The following diagrams provide examples of where the ban applies.