Today, people can freely light up a cigarette in the middle of the crowd at music festivals in Norway. That may soon come to an end.
If the Cancer Society gets its way, smoking at festivals may be banned. They want smoke-free outdoor concerts and festivals, the newspaper Aftenposten writes.
“It is because many people will have a more pleasant experience, and of course also because we generally want less smoking,” general secretary Ingrid Stenstadvold Ross stated.
14% of the population aged 16–24 are so-called “party smokers,” according to figures from Statistics Norway. In the age group 25–34, the share is 9%.
In June 2021, the Ministry of Health and Care Services submitted proposals for changes to the Tobacco Damage Act for consultation. One of the points proposed a smoking ban at bus stops, outdoor sports arenas, and playgrounds. Festivals and outdoor concerts were initially not covered.
“The government will present a new tobacco strategy in the spring of 2023. In connection with this, it will also decide on possible extensions of the smoking ban,” State Secretary Ole Henrik Krat Bjørkholt (AP) told Aftenposten in an email.
Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews
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How about making outdoor eating areas smoke-free first? This has been bad in Oslo, where if you want to sit outside, inevitably I get seated next to a table of smokers. It’s gross and at least in a outdoor festival you can move further away from smokers.