£150 FINE LEAVES ANDREW FUMING

May 18 2006 Paisley Daily Express

A WORKER at a Paisley off-licence is flaming angry after he was hit with a whopping £150 fine for helping a woman to light her cigarette.

Andrew Cairns, who works at the Bottles off-sales in Causeyside Street, has been ordered to pay the price for breaching the strict ban on smoking in public places.

The cash penalty was imposed after an enforcement officer from Renfrewshire Council witnessed Andrew be a gentleman and give a customer a light as she left the shop.

However, the 55-year-old is so angry about the punishment that he has now lodged an appeal.

Yesterday, Andrew told the Paisley Daily Express: “All I did was give this woman a helping hand and I think a £150 fine is way over the top. It must be the most expensive light anyone has ever given.

“She had bought stuff and was on her way out of the shop when she asked me for a light. She was practically out of the door when I lit her cigarette and was gone a few seconds later.

“I don’t think she even had time for a single puff from the cigarette before she left.

“There was a man from the council who was in the shop at the time and he told me I should be more careful because I had broken the rules when I gave the woman a light.

“I thought that would be the end of it but he came back the next day to tell me I was being fined £150. I was really taken aback.”

The Scottish Executive’s controversial ban on smoking in enclosed public places was introduced earlier this year.

Under the Smoking, Health and Social Care (Scotland) Act 2005, it is now illegal to light up in shops, pubs, restaurants and a host of other public places.

However, Andrew believes council chiefs should have let him off with “a slap on the wrist.”

He said: “It’s hardly the crime of the century and I think a verbal warning would have been more appropriate.

“I’ve been really strict about the smoking ban since it came into force. I don’t let customers smoke inside the shop and the staff always go outside if they want to have a cigarette.

“I don’t earn a lot of money, so having to pay a £150 fine would really hurt.”

Andrew will learn his fate tomorrow when his appeal against the fine is considered.

He said: “I hope they will see the light and tell me I don’t have to pay the fine. I’ve learned my lesson and, if anyone else asks me to give them a light in the shop, I’ll say no.”

A Renfrewshire Council spokesperson said: “I can confirm that a penalty notice was issued on a person who permitted smoking in a no-smoking premises.

“An appeal has been lodged and will be heard on May 19.”