The law prohibiting smoking in public places has been enacted Friday by President Klaus Iohannis, the Presidential Administration informs.
Thus, smoking will be banned in restaurants and clubs starting mid-March, since the entry into force is made within 45 days of its publication in the Official Journal.
In Romania, according to numbers provided, there are more than 3 million smokers and five people die every hour because of tobacco.
On January 27, the Constitutional Court ruled that the law banning smoking in public places is constitutional. The judges voted unanimously to reject the referral submitted.
The document filed with the Court, argued that by defining the closed public space as any space for collective use, regardless of ownership, the law introduces a form of discrimination.
The initiators of the referral argue in the quoted document, that the law regulating smoking in public areas creates a discrimination between persons in custody and those in prisons and those in transit at an airport, who are allowed to smoke in a closed public space and the other citizens smokers.
The law against smoking bans smoke-free areas in the workplace and in any playground for children, whether in the open or closed space.
The prohibition also applies for transportation means, for public health units, as well as for all units for the children education , protection and assistance, state and private.
Failure to comply with the anti-smoking law by individuals is punishable by a fine from 100 lei to 500 lei, and failure to comply by legal persons is punishable by a fine of RON 5,000 for the first offense to a fine of 10,000 lei and with additional penalties such as the suspension of work until the remedy of the situation that led to the suspension of operations.
Committing a new offense under the anti-smoking law is punishable by a fine of 15,000 lei and with the complementary sanction of closing down the unit.
Antismoking Law was initiated by PSD deputy Aurelia Cristea, who was supported by several NGOs in promoting this project. Cristea said she did nothing more than take the law from PSD deputy Manuela Mitrea and amended it following a request for public debate based on the best practices of European countries.
Currently, 17 from the 28 European Union countries prohibit all smoking in enclosed public places, on public transport and at work.