Could E-Cigarettes Be Banned from UK Bingo Halls?

If you’re an ex-smoker who’s recently quit the habit, you’d be quite entitled to give yourself a well-deserved pat on the back. However, not everyone fares so well with the cold turkey method, so perhaps you’ve been staying on the straight and narrow by using products like nicotine replacement patches or e-cigarettes? If it’s the latter, you might be alarmed to hear that these clever devices could potentially be banned from UK bingo halls. Currently, many (although not all) land-based bingo clubs allow the use of electronic cigarettes indoors. However, a recent EU review of the Tobacco Products Directive has unleashed an animated debate on the pros and cons of e-cigarettes and smoking in the workplace. The aim of the EU Review is to make all forms of smoking less attractive to younger people to help discourage them from taking up the habit. As a result, HR departments will be hard-pushed to decide whether to allow the use of the electronic devices at work, for fear of upsetting employees who consider it the same as smoking; or, to continue to allow their use to prevent accusations from those trying to quit smoking that their efforts are being hampered by their employer.

It’s certainly not going to be possible to please everyone, and many companies are likely to have to face tough decisions in the months to come. We were, therefore, interested to see a post on the Gala Bingo Facebook page earlier this month, addressed to its retail customers. It stated that “in light of the sharp and recent change” in the use and acceptance of e-cigarettes, they will be reviewing their “policies with regard to the use of these” in Gala Bingo clubs. It went on to add that they will feedback on their decision “following customer feedback.” So far, there have been a plethora of Facebook fans commenting on the post, many of whom are unhappy to say the least about the potential ban on the use of electronic cigarettes in Gala’s clubs.

If you’re an e-cigarette user and your local bingo club decided to ban their use, would you continue to attend the club, or would you boycott it? Maybe, you’re a non-smoker who thinks that electronic cigarettes are just as bad as the real thing, and you’d like them banned from Gala Bingo and all other clubs? We’d love to hear your reasons for and against?

www.galabingo.com