The British hospitality industry has been warned of more closures after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer confirmed plans to implement a new smoking ban.
The Labour leader defended the move, claiming that banning smoking in outdoor areas such as pub gardens will "reduce the burden" on the NHS and taxpayers.
In response to reports, which sparked fury following a document leak this morning, Starmer said: "Over 80,000 people lose their lives every year because of smoking doing it. That's a preventable death.
"So yes, we are going to take decisions in this space. More details will be revealed, but this is a preventable series of deaths, and we've got to take action to reduce the burden on the NHS and reduce the burden on the taxpayer."
'Thousands more pubs could close' as a result of the incoming smoking ban, Tom Slater has warned
Getty / GB News
Discussing the latest plans from Labour, Editor of Spiked Tom Slater said this is "absolutely not" a time for the nanny state to come out against Britons, arguing that non-smokers "tend to cost the taxpayer more in terms of health care".
Slater told GB News: "It's also worth remembering that they also want to bring in a nationwide ban, albeit one that's going to be escalated through the age ranges.
"There is no real case for this, at least in terms of the arguments that are being made, the idea that smokers are a tremendous drain on public services. Numerous studies have shown now that actually non-smokers tend to cost the taxpayer more in terms of health care because they tend to live longer."
Highlighting the economic impact of such a ban in Britain, Slater warned that "thousands" more pubs could close as a result of a plummet in business.
Slater added: "You want to talk about the economic impact? It's going to lead to thousands more pubs closing.
Sir Keir Starmer has defended the ban and claimed that 'decisions will be made' on the legislation
POOL
"And even the Government's own impact assessments point to that happening if you have an outdoor smoking ban."
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
In defence of Starmer, TV personality Steve Miller argued that the ban is "common sense" and people can "easily be dramatic" about it.
Miller told GB News: "What he's actually proposing is a ban on smoking in pub gardens, where a lot of children play and restaurant terraces. I don't know about you, but I don't want smoke in my face when I've paid a lot of money for a meal.
"What he's doing is using some common sense. I'm not a fan of nanny state at all, but sometimes nanny has to come out. And what we do know is passive smoking does potentially kill people."
Hitting back at Miller's remarks, Slater claimed that the potential of someone being killed by second-hand smoke is "nonsense".
Steve Miller defended the ban and claimed it is 'common sense'
GB News
Slater fumed: "On the question of health, the idea that someone smoking within a few feet of you in a pub beer garden is of any threat to your health, of whatever age range, is nonsense.
"Everyone knows that this is the case, and I think this fundamentally comes down to the fact that within Government, within this party, as well as with its Tory predecessors, there are just people who believe that it is their right, that it is their job to impose their own taste on the rest of us."