HC Deb 31 October 2001 vol 373 c753W
Mrs. Browning

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will(a) introduce and (b) enforce a smoking ban in jury rooms within the Courts Service. [11139]

Mr. Wills

Court managers currently have the discretion to introduce a non-smoking policy in communal jury areas wherever the accommodation allows for a separate, well-ventilated smoking area to be provided nearby.

Jury retiring rooms are used whenever a jury is considering a verdict. During this time jurors are not allowed to come into contact with anyone outside the retiring room and resource constraints mean it is not always possible to provide a separate dedicated smoking facility for each retiring room, although smokers are asked to consider the comfort of their fellow jurors while in the retiring rooms. The often stressful nature of deliberation means that it is neither feasible to introduce nor possible to enforce a ban in these rooms.

There are currently no proposals to change existing arrangements or policy in respect of jury rooms.

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