The proposal to ban tobacco smoking from Trinity and all its campuses across Dublin is pushing ahead and is beginning to gather momentum. The results of an online survey of all College Staff and Students last April showed significant support for the proposal and though the exact figures are as yet unavailable, it is known that as little as a third of respondents objected to the idea, with a solid majority giving the proposal their backing.
A consultation process is to begin in October with a number of “Town Hall style” meetings around campus where students and staff of the college may weigh in on the proposal. An email will be distributed to all staff and students in the second week of October notifying them of dates and times for three town hall meetings. There will be a neutral chair who will encourage comments from the floor. A summary report on foot of these meetings will form the basis of a number of Working Groups to investigate the feasibility of the proposal in more detail. Students and staff are encouraged to participate in these groups. This will culminate in a straight up or down vote on the issue at a Board meeting in the Spring.
Speaking on behalf of the Students’ Union, President Tom Lenihan stated that: “Students must be consulted on this and we will be putting it to the students so we can proceed with an effective mandate as to how we should interact with the project.”
The Department of Public Health and Primary Care in the School of Medicine which is running the consultation has listed the following as possible problems with the implementation of a smoking ban: where smokers would go to smoke; where residents on campus would go; how a Tobacco Free Trinity (TFT) would affect banqueting, conferences and the campus bar; and how TFT would affect staff. The most frequently cited objection to the proposal is the prospect of hordes of smokers clogging the entrances to the college and posing a public safety hazard and as such this is likely to be the focus of the work carried out by the Working Groups. The proposal is likely to be the subject of much heated debate throughout College in the coming months.
