Germans Favor Smoking Ban

Fifty-three percent of Germans endorse banning smoking in public places, including bars, while 45 percent were opposed, a survey revealed Tuesday. Of the 1,000 respondents, every third smoker favored a ban similar to the one which went into effect in Ireland in March, the Bonn-based polling organization OmniQuest said. Every third non-smoker rejected the idea. In Ireland smoking is prohibited in all public areas except workplaces that double as residences, such as hotel rooms, prisons, nursing homes and psychiatric hospitals. Offenders can be fined €3,000 ($3,580).