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A ban on smoking on school grounds, hospital grounds and public playgrounds in Wales will be enforced from March next year.

Welsh Health Minister Vaughan Gething made the announcement on Tuesday (September 29).

After the rules are implemented on March 1, local authorities will have the power to issue fixed-penalty notices to anyone caught smoking in these settings.

Mr Gething said: “There is strong public support to restrict smoking where children are likely to be present. We will continue to take steps to de-normalise this habit and provide a very clear message for children.

“The evidence that smoking is harmful and damaging is clear cut and our message must be too.”

Mr Gething added: “The impact of Covid-19 has affected many areas of our lives, yet we are determined to continue to make sustained and positive changes.

“Whilst the evidence on smoking and Covid-19 is still emerging, smokers generally have an increased risk of contracting respiratory infections, such as Covid-19, and so the introduction of these requirements are supporting our response to the pandemic.

“We are committed to our longer-term goal of making more of Wales’ public spaces smoke-free, helping people to make positive changes to not only their own lives, but also to the health and wellbeing of their children and families.”

The measures are part of the Public Health (Wales) Act 2017, which received Royal Assent after being passed by the Senedd.

By introducing the ban, Wales has become the first country in the UK to legislate for bans on smoking in playgrounds and school grounds.

In Scotland, similar restrictions on smoking on hospital grounds are in the process of being implemented.