HEALTH Minister Anne Pryke is to be commended for her attempt to cut back still further on the activities of young cigarette smokers.

This latest government attempt to restrict the number of places where smoking is permitted, sold or advertised is yet another public statement that the addiction is an unwelcome burden on an already underfunded health service.

It seems that although adult smokers by and large acknowledge that smoking is bad for health – even if they cannot find the strength within themselves to kick what is an extremely addictive habit – some younger people, apparently, continue to see it as a badge of rebellion.

It will not be without its critics, however – the retail sector has already made loud noises of protest, complaining that at a time when retailers are already losing income because of the recession, these extra restrictions on advertising and product placement will cost them dear.

At the same time, even non-smokers may see the new measures as going a step too far. Surely no government should be trying to stop people smoking in their own homes or motor vehicles? And how can they prevent a parent from smoking at home, even if they have a young baby in the house? How would this be enforced – would the authorities take the child away?

For non-smokers, the restrictions that have been in place for several years now have themselves become a nuisance. Smokers now tend to congregate in hitherto clean and smoke-free public places – including the entrances of blocks of flats and private properties – leaving their trail of stubs as evidence. And believe me, there is nothing as irritating as being woken repeatedly in the early hours of the morning by a gaggle of smokers trooping outside for their half-hourly fix.

What counts as a ‘public’ space seems difficult to pin down. The same rules which now apply in offices and public buildings and force addicts out onto the streets or huddled in doorways have simply turned outside public spaces into impromptu pubs, but without the booze.

Nevertheless, there’s no doubt that banishing smokers outside is preferable to having them on the next table in the restaurant, or in the next seat on a bus – or aeroplane, as used to be common practice.

•Read the full column in Saturday’s JEP