Editor,—The last decade has seen a lowering of the Australian community's acceptance of smoking in public places.1-3 International research investigating compliance with smoking restrictions in public places is scarce, however. An Australian study evaluated compliance with legislation introduced in the Australian Capital Territory in 1994.4This study measured the level of compliance by businesses with legislation prohibiting smoking in public places and found that, while only 22% of 938 businesses surveyed complied fully with the signage requirements of the legislation, evidence of smoking occurred in only 5% of the premises reviewed. The study found that successful implementation of non-smoking legislation was facilitated by awareness of the legislation by both customers and business managers, strong public support for the legislation, and targeted information.4

A US study examining the degree of compliance with smoke free legislation in retail stores and shopping malls found that compliance by shoppers was linked to the display of no smoking signs and to employees being well informed about the …