Anti-smoking law to be updated to plug loopholes

Over the next three months the Health Ministry will seek to close the loopholes in the anti-smoking legislation that allow closed areas to be characterized as open-air, thus allowing people to smoke.

More specifically, the smoking of cigarettes will be expressly banned in cafes, bars, restaurants etc that are closed with canopies, plastic sheeting and other protective barriers.

It will do this, in cooperation with the relevant ministries, by updating the smoking ban legislation and providing a more precise description of the areas where smoking is prohibited, and by redefining the tobacco products whose use is prohibited in enclosed public places, taking into account all the new products that are on the market.

Actions to prevent smoking from a very young age are also being planned. The aim is that children born in Greece in 2025 will be the first generation not to smoke and not to be exposed to tobacco.