New laws will force bars and restaurants to make big changes in South Africa

South African liquor traders are hitting back at proposed new smoking laws for South Africa that will force taverns, bars and restaurants to restructure.

This would include forcing patrons outside to smoke, actively policing their behaviour, and enforcing structural guidelines that are impractical and potentially dangerous for the majority of bars.

The Department of Health is currently processing the Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill, which aims to make significant changes to the country’s smoking laws.

Among the notable changes, the laws would ban the display advertising of tobacco products, regulate and standardise packaging, and bring in new controls for e-cigarettes and vaping.

While pubs, bars and taverns would be impacted by these laws as well—such as the banning of tobacco vending machines—it’s the changes to where people are allowed to smoke that presents the biggest issue.

Under the laws, there would be a complete ban on smoking indoors and in certain outdoor public spaces.

According to industry bodies, this presents a significant challenge to places like taverns and bars, or even restaurants, hotels and guest houses, who will have to bear the costs of restructuring their businesses.

Giving its input on the new laws, the Gauteng Liquor Traders Association (GLTA) noted that the previous revisions to South Africa’s smoking laws already forced these businesses to designate certain space for smoking.

The space designated, by law, was 25% of the establishment. The association said that many smaller businesses had to take out loans to create this space for smoking patrons.

Now, with the new laws proposing that these areas be abolshed, this will come with an additional cost to these businesses, who have to create new legal spaces for people to smoke.

While this may be manageable for bigger business in formal environments, it is completely impractical in informal settlements or townships which make up a huge part of the sector, the association said.

“The bill will ban all indoor smoking, and patrons will instead need to find an area outdoors to smoke, which is not near a window, ventilation or entrance of exit.”

“The Minister has discretion over this distance, but the Department of Health previously suggested 10 metres. This provision is totally unworkable in a township environment. No matter what distance the Minister prescribes, it will be impossible in a township,” it said.

The association added that there are also safety concerns involved. Patrons may have to move to isolated areas to smoke, away from security of the main building, leaving them vulnerable to crime.

If owners or employees want to smoke, they too have to step away from the main building, potentially leaving the tavern itself vulnerable, or cutting productivity of workers who have to travel further away.

While the association’s concerns are focused on informal traders in townships, it said that the new laws would impact all businesses that have designated smoking areas in line with the current laws, and all would incur costs.

Crime and punishment

By making it more difficult for businesses to trade, the government also risks pushing more operations into the illicit market.

According to Business Against Crime South Africa (BACSA), the bill’s failure to adequately address already entrenched illicit trade may inadvertently strengthen criminal networks and compromise the integrity of legitimate supply chains.

“The illicit tobacco market is currently estimated to comprise 60–70 % of all tobacco sales, costing the fiscus approximately R18 billion annually and removing these taxes from the national budget,” the group said.

“Despite this, the draft bill includes no specific enforcement mechanisms targeting illicit trade, nor does it propose tools such as track‑and‑trace systems or enhanced border controls.”

The GLTA pointed to a more direct issue: the new laws create a slew of offences that could be ripe for corruption, including from those who would be enforcing the laws.

It said that it is no secret that there are certain elements of the SAPS and law enforcement that use any opportunity to extract a bribe.

“If laws are not adhered to, or a tavern or restaurant owner fails to spot an errant smoker, you create more opportunities for corruption,” it said.

The penalty for smoking in a banned area is three months in prison, and/or a fine. The penalty for smoking near a non-smoking employee is 10 years in prison and/or a fine.

“Surely there are more serious crimes that our law enforcement and justice system should focus on for the sake of the country,” the association said.