Australia: New Laws Stub out Public Smoking Areas

Source from:  Sydney Morning Herald (au)  01/06/2013

SMOKERS making a New Year's resolution to quit will be given a helping hand, with a new range of public places where smoking will be banned from next week.
 
Smoking at playgrounds, bus stops, sports grounds, swimming pools and the entrances to all public buildings will become illegal from January 7.
 
The regulations are part of new state laws that will take effect from as early as New Year's Day. They include an end to vehicle registration stickers, harsher workers' compensation rules, a law forcing taxi drivers to wear seatbelts, and compulsory fire sprinkler systems in aged-care homes.
 
The Health Minister, Jillian Skinner, said reducing the places where people could smoke would keep more people out of hospitals. "While these changes will be unpopular with some, the NSW government is committed to ensuring the exposure of the public - particularly children - to second-hand smoke is as limited as possible,"she said.

From January 1, renewing a car registration will not require a sticker on the windscreen. The Roads Minister, Duncan Gay, has also announced a new system that will allow people to use an iPhone app to complete their registration.
 
Also from January 1, travelling by public transport will become more expensive. The cheapest adult single fare on a CityRail train will rise by 20¢ to $3.60. A one-section bus fare will increase by 10¢ to $2.20 and a single ferry trip will go up 20¢ to $5.80. Enditem