THE Minister of Health Lesego Motsumi is scheduled to present to Parliament the Control of Smoking (Amendment) Bill, 2004. The Bill seeks to amend some of the clauses of the present Smoking Act and ban smoking in public places.

The Bill is an attempt by the Ministry to revamp the current Act in a bid to make the work place and entertainment areas risk free to non-smokers.

It introduces new and strict penalties for violating the smoking ban and related infringements.

According to government's extraordinary gazette, the Bill seeks to protect people who do not smoke from smokers in public places. It will ban bosses from smoking in their offices.

"The Bill imposes certain obligations on the owner of a public or work place and public service vehicles to take steps to ensure that no one smokes in contravention of the provisions of the bill," says the notice.

Some workers have in the past complained that some of their colleagues smoke in their presence therefore endangering their lives.

It is expected that the Bill would be a milestone to non-smokers, who frequent lodges and other places of relaxation as the owners of such places would be compelled to cater for them.

The owner of a lodge, for example, must make sure that there are separate places for smokers and non-smokers.

The Bill seeks to restrict the sale of tobacco products to people or by people who are 18 and above unlike the current law which puts it at 16.

According to the school-based survey conducted in 2001 by the Ministry of Health, about 14% of school-going children used tobacco and 6% smoked cigarettes.

Smoking has recently received a lot of attention and the Ministry of Health is working on another draft bill that seeks to impose restrictions on tobacco products.