TEXTO PARA LA CLASE DE INGLÉS DEL LUNES 8 DE FEBRERO DEL

2010

Saturday, November 13
New anti-tobacco reforms

The Spanish government has announced this week reforms which aim to prevent
people from smoking in public and private work areas, teaching and sport centres
and bars.

Until now, Spain has been one of Europe's most "permissive" (in words of Elena
Salgado, Spain's Health Minister) countries in terms of the price of cigarettes and
the availability of places where people can smoke. Until very recently, restaurants
and bars were all-smoking zones, and it was quite usual to be attended in places
like a bank or a public administration by someone with a cigarette dangling from
his or her fingers.

Spain's present government is determined to tackle the problem of tobacco

addiction in Spain and announced this week measures aimed at reducing
consumption. The government hopes to reach consensus with all the affected
groups in terms of advertising, public spaces where smoking is allowed and the
legal age at which teenagers are alllowed to buy cigarrettes - the Health Minister
has already announced that fines imposed for selling tobacco to teenagers under
the age-limit will be more severe than at present.

Ms Salgado, underlined last week that tobacco-addiction is the main cause of death
in Spain, and the precentage of smokers in Spain is one of the highest in Europe.
She said that government reforms would try to protect the rights of non-smokers
 and help smokers to give up the habit.

New anti-tobacco legislation in Spain is expected to be passed in 2006 and will

include the following clauses:

 The sale of tobacco to people under 18 years throughout Spain will be

illegal (in some autonomous communities the legal age is 16)
 The sale of tobacco will be forbidden in all health clinics, centres of
education, culture and/or sport activities, and associations offering care
and leisure to adolescents

 Smoking will be forbidden in all closed places of work in the private and
public sectors

 Smoking will be forbidden in all health and education centers; sport

facilities; centers offering advice and attention to citizens; centers offering
help to teenagers under 18 and places where food is prepared, made or sold

 Smoking will be forbidden in all lifts, telephone booths, indoor cashpoints,

public transport, bus stations, and all areas of public transport which are
not open air (metro, indoor bus stations, railway stations, airports....)

According to the latest figures, tobacco causes 50,000 deaths in Spain each year, i.e.
more than all deaths caused by AIDS, alcohol and road accidents together.