Patio heaters could be banned by the European Union over fears that they are contributing to global warming.

Euro-MPs will today vote on energy efficiency proposals to phase out the sale of the popular gas-burning appliances which are increasingly found outside bars, cafés and restaurants since the indoor smoking ban.

But the proposal has been attacked by publicans, who say bars and pubs need the heaters for customers driven outside by smoking bans.

The trade has invested £86.5 million in heaters over the past 12 months and a ban could cost pubs, cafés and restaurants an estimated £250 million a year in lost business.

Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party, said: “Not content with devastating the pub trade with the illiberal and ill-informed smoking ban, these autocratic busybodies now want to make smokers stand in the cold and the rain.

A UN climate expert questioned the usefulness of a ban.

“The overall impact of outdoor heaters on global warming and greenhouse gas emissions is very minimal,” said Dr Eric Johnson, of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

(This has nothing to do with climate change. That’s just being used as an excuse to go after smokers and make it impossible for them to smoke in public, anywhere. Nicotine Nannies can’t stand the idea that pubs are still accommodating them, and will use any excuse to prevent it.)

Source: The Telegraph. Link

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 31st, 2008 at 4:24 pm and is filed under Bars/Taverns, Europe, Harassment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.