Bill seeks to replace Bulgaria’s smoking ban with restrictions

Two Bulgarian MPs tabled on September 28 a bill of amendments to the Health Act that would repeal the country’s ban on tobacco smoking in indoor public spaces and certain outdoor areas, according to a Sofia Globe story.

The ban went into effect on June 1.

The bill’s authors, Kiril Goumnerov and Stoyan Ivanov, who are not affiliated to any parliamentary group, said they wanted a return to the regulatory position that existed before the introduction of the ban whereby all establishments bigger than 70 square meters had to have separate smoking and non-smoking areas, while smaller establishments had the choice of being either fully-smoking or non-smoking.

Under the bill, night clubs would be smoking establishments, regardless of their size, but they would not be allowed to give entry to underage customers.

If the bill were to pass, the MPs plan to follow it up with another set of amendments that would increase taxes on smoking establishments while lowering them for non-smoking ones.

They also want it written into law that all tobacco and cigarette excise duties are spent on health care.