Smokey Jim

It seems that the leader of North Lanarkshire Council Jim McCabe has been caught breaking anti-Smoking legislation by smoking in his office while giving an interview with a journalist from Holyrood magazine. Action should be taken in this case as its important to recognise that this legislation has to be upheld and it cannot be flouted by anyone.

To his credit Cllr McCabe has at least acknowledged his error but it seems this is not enough for two campaign groups who held entirely opposing viewpoints on the smoking ban.

The smoking lobby group Forest said that “It seems to be one law for us and one law for them. It is disgraceful. The Labour Party duped people into this law. It was not in their manifesto. Now they are sitting back, laughing at us."

From the anti-smoking lobby a representative of ASH said that “No-one is above the law. It is extremely disappointing that Jim McCabe, as leader of North Lanarkshire Council, is so flagrantly and repeatedly breaching Scotland's law on smoke-free enclosed public places."

At least Cllr McCabe has helped these two opposing groups see eye to eye on something.