Tokyo governor to push for smoking ban before 2020 Olympics

Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike will push for a law banning smoking in public places, to make the Japanese capital smoke-free ahead of the 2020 Summer Olympics, media said, defying national politicians who failed to pass a similar law this spring.

Tokyo risks being one of the unhealthiest cities to host the Olympics in years, but efforts for a national ban died in the face of opposition from pro-smoking politicians – many in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s ruling party – as well as restaurateurs and Japan Tobacco, which is one-third government-owned and paid the state $700 million in dividends in 2015.

Although passive smoking kills thousands of Japanese each year, the Health Ministry’s watered-down proposal – which would have allowed indoor smoking in smaller establishments with adequate ventilation – could not make it to a vote in parliament this spring.

Koike, her hand strengthened by a sweeping victory over Abe’s party in weekend local elections, told the Nikkei Shimbun daily that a law banning indoor smoking could be submitted to the assembly, where her party and allies now have a strong majority, for a vote as soon as this autumn.

“The country is slow, but we will carry out our duty as the host city,” the paper quoted Koike as saying.

Read Reuters

Photo by taqumi

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.


Discover more from Swimmer’s Daily

Subscribe to get the latest posts to your email.