Tonight in the House of Commons, MPs voted overwhelmingly in favour of a total ban of smoking in all enclosed public spaces. By making the decision a free vote (meaning that the party whips will not tell members which way to vote), the government has managed to avoid too much criticism about the outcome. Although the Labour manifesto originally promised a partial ban that would not affect private members’ clubs, senior government figures, including the Prime Minister, voted in favour of a total ban.

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