Proposition 55K0683

Projet de loi modifiant, en ce qui concerne l'interdiction de fumer en voiture, la loi du 22 décembre 2009 instaurant une réglementation relative à la protection de la population contre la fumée du tabac, et la loi du 24 janvier 1977 relative à la protection de la santé des consommateurs en ce qui concerne les denrées alimentaires et les autres produits.

General information ¶

Authors

CD&V Els Van Hoof
LE Catherine Fonck
Vooruit Karin Jiroflée

Submission date

Oct. 24, 2019

Official page

Visit

Status

Adopted

Requirement

Simple

Subjects

motor car health policy child criminal law tobacco

Voting ¶

Voted to adopt

Groen CD&V Vooruit Ecolo LE PS | SP DéFI Open Vld N-VA MR PVDA | PTB VB

Voted to reject

LDD

Party dissidents ¶

• Catherine Fonck (LE) voted to adopt.

Contact form ¶

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Discussion ¶

April 16, 2020 | Plenary session (Chamber of representatives)

Full source

The rapporteurs are Mrs. Hennuy and Mrs. Creemers, who refer to the written report for their reports.

One thing in the world is fairly distributed, and that is common sense. Everyone thinks he has enough of it, but in practice it turns out that is not always the case. That is also the reason why we should vote today on a bill that is actually superfluous or that should be. For all clarity, this is not a blame to the applicants. That is not a blame for Mrs. Fonck, Mrs. Jiroflée or Mrs. Van Hoof.

Smoking in the car with young people whether or not on the back seat, I honestly wonder who gets it in his head to put the health of young people and often their own children at risk in this way. Even as a former smoker, it has never come up with me to smoke in a too small space where children or young people are present, let alone I would have come up with the idea to do so in a car.

Apparently, this logic does not permeate everyone. Apparently, not everyone is convinced that smoking is harmful to health. Apparently, some people are somehow convinced that young people are immune to the harmful effects of smoking. Therefore, the common sense is apparently not as fairly distributed as we originally thought. So unfortunately we need a law to regulate this, a law that should actually be superfluous but that apparently is not, a law that prohibits smoking in the car in the presence of young people.

For the Flemish Interest, every step towards a smoke-free society is a good step. Therefore, I am pleased to announce that the Flemish Interest will enthusiastically support this bill.

Mr. Speaker, colleagues, vulnerable groups in society deserve protection and in these coronation times even more. Hence the usefulness of this bill to protect minors from tobacco smoke in the car. Passive smoking also increases the risk of respiratory diseases and possibly the risk of developing a severe form of corona.

Also independent of the coronavirus, the negative consequences of passive smoking are serious, especially in minors who, in the way of speaking, more smoke in the car. They have a reduced lung function, an increased risk of respiratory infections and an increased risk of asthma. Smoking in the car in the presence of children also exposes them to concentrations of carcinogens, much higher than in the home even. In this small space, concentrations are 11 to 27 times higher.

At the end of the previous legislature, an important law was passed that prohibited smoking in a closed vehicle in the presence of persons under 16 years of age. This law was of course suitable for improvement. Our group thought so at the time. We wanted to raise the age to 18 years because 16 and 17 years old are also minors and can not drive the car themselves. There was also a lack of an element of enforcement and control to make this law more efficient and effective. I am therefore pleased that I have been able to work well with Ms. Fonck and Ms. Jiroflée in this regard. Now, of course, we have raised the age from 16 to 18 years. This was done in consensus as in the previous legislature we had also raised the age for the purchase of tobacco from 16 to 18 years.

I have submitted a number of amendments to enforce this law. At the regional level, several decrees had been adopted that did not facilitate enforcement by working through the environmental inspection. My amendments to clarify the sanction and control powers were adopted. Now the FOD Public Health is responsible, in particular the auditors of the Control Service Tobacco and Alcohol. They can now carry out checks and impose administrative fines for infringements. It makes no sense to make a law if it cannot be controlled.

I withdrew another amendment, although it was supported by the majority of the committee members. This was meant to give the auditors access to the Vehicle Registration Service. In case of a flight crime, inspectors must be able to verify who is the owner of the car. However, I did not want to delay the present bill, because when it comes to the Vehicle Registration Service, an opinion must be sought from the Data Protection Authority, hence I converted my amendment into a bill. I hope, dear colleagues, that you keep your word and that this proposal, when it will be discussed in the committee, will be re-approved, hopefully with a positive opinion from the Data Protection Authority.

I would like to thank you, colleagues, for the good cooperation on this subject. It is, of course, an important step towards a smoke-free and healthier society that we strive for today.

On 20 February last year, we voted in the House for a complete ban on tobacco advertising, because there were still some exceptions. In the previous legislature, the age limit for the sale of tobacco was raised from 16 to 18 years. We were one of the last countries in Europe to raise that age limit. This is, of course, very important, because we know that the younger you start smoking, the more it affects the addiction and the more difficult it is to get rid of that addiction later. The increase of the age limit to 18 years for smoking in the car is therefore a logical measure that follows all other measures already taken, such as the sale ban and the smoking ban.

The PVDA strongly supports this proposal.

I would like to thank all the colleagues who will support this text. This is, of course, one element among others. It is important to protect non-smokers, and especially to protect minors. It is known that the sensitivity of minors to the harmful effects of tobacco is much greater than that of adults. The impact of tobacco hazardousness is clearly much higher in minors than in adults. Therefore, it is important to have mechanisms to protect the health of our minors. As my colleague said, we all need to mobilize for future generations without tobacco. This is one step among others. I hope that we will be able to continue to discuss this, and to take additional measures.

First of all, I would like to thank the authors of this bill that aims to protect minors from passive smoking. It is very important to take measures to protect the population from active smoking, including by raising awareness, but we must also be proactive in combating passive smoking. This is a public health issue that we must be sensitive to and that should push us to legislate as best we can.

This bill also aims to bring us in line with the ban on the sale of tobacco products to minors. The age at which this prohibition ceases was set at 18 years in the previous legislature. But it also aims to put us in line with another bill that we voted two months ago and which aimed, in its own right, at a total ban on tobacco advertising in point-of-sale.

We are fully consistent in saying that we will support this bill. This is a vote of course. Let us emphasize that this law, like the other laws on the same subject that we have voted for, must also be followed by the adoption by the next federal government – I call on all the parties present – of a true national anti-tobacco plan that must be made in consultation with the federal entities, both at the level of its elaboration and at the level of its implementation.