Simon Clark: 'The smoking ban has been a disaster for many'

The pub is the heart of a community. The smoking ban has been a disaster for many pubs in Scotland and if we don't want a great many more to shut we need to find ways to accommodate smokers in a comfortable environment otherwise they will simply stay at home.

This is not about infringing on the rights of non-smokers to enjoy a night out in a smoke-free environment. It's about providing choice for everyone - licensees, bar staff and customers, smokers and non-smokers alike.

We were told large numbers of people would give up as a result of the ban but that simply hasn't happened.

We have always maintained the best place for people to smoke is in a well-ventilated bar. Its also somewhere that's sociable. We don't want everyone staying at home, you want them to go out and socialise with friends and neighbours and the pub is the place to do that.

There has been a decline in the number of pubs going back 20 years but for most of the period up until 2006 it was a decline of 1-2 per cent. Suddenly it has shot up to 11 per cent.

If that trend continues more and more communities will lose their pubs and clubs and I think that would do enormous damage to our cultural heritage.

The smoking ban is not the only factor. But factors, like cheap supermarket beer, have been around for a long time and pre-date the smoking ban. The recession began in the third quarter of 2008 which in Scotland was 18 months after the ban was introduced.

We are not calling for the ban to be repealed. We just want a minor amendment that would allow things like separate smoking rooms which would protect the interests of non-smokers. Regulations on outdoor smoking shelters should be relaxed so people can smoke outside in a warm and comfortable environment all year round.

The government should get off its anti-smoking hobby horse and come up with a pragmatic policy that does not result in the loss of hundreds of more pubs and potentially thousands of jobs.

• Simon Clark is a director of the Save Our Pubs and Clubs campaign