Calls have been made for the government to ban smoking in outdoor beer gardens.
The Irish Heart Foundation has made the appeal, following a similar proposal mooted by the UK government.
Senior Policy Manager for the I-H-F, Mark Murphy told The Irish Daily Mail a similar measure should be introduced here.
"Banning cigarettes in these outdoor spaces de-normalises the act of smoking, particularly for children and young people who copy pretty much everything that adults and their parents do.
"It would also protect the health of staff members who often have to work in outdoor areas with very little ventilation," he told the paper.
In the past year, the government here has made an effort to tackle the increasing number of people choosing other tobacco products such as e-cigarettes.
A public consultation was held regarding the Further Regulation of Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Products, which will likely result in stricter advertising rules around vapes, changes to packaging, removing flavours and banning single-use vapes.
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