Former LibDem leader Charles Kennedy got into another spot of bother on Friday. Travelling on the train to Plymouth, he took umbrage at being told to put out his cigarette by the Train Manager. We don’t know much about the exchange of words although it was enough for the rail employee to call the police who duly met him at Plymouth Station.
Most trains have been smoke-free for years. I can’t remember the last time I saw someone with a cigarette on the train. However, Kennedy thought it was okay to smoke on trains if you puffed out of the window! Yes, but he should be liberal on such matters, shouldn’t he? You would have thought so, but he voted in Parliament for the smoking ban.
Is it true that there is still a “smoking lounge” in the commons? Better get myself a job there methinks!
I don’t think there is anymore. There are 4 places for smokers and I think they are all outside. (Being a non-smoker, I only remember the one that I walk past on the way to lunch.)
Recently a Labour MP offered to show the Leader of the House, Harriet Harman where people were smoking which started heckling cries of “divisional toilets” from other MPs. Until recently I worked in an office on a corridor with several senior MPs. One definitely smoked enough to fill the corridor with the stench. I’ve narrowed it down to two possibilities. (I won’t say which two even though its not really important enough to save for the memoirs.)