‘All reasonable steps’ for site smoking ban include CCTV, cigarette storage points

Contractors should take “all reasonable steps”, such as installing CCTV cameras and setting up temporary cigarette storage points, to comply with a coming smoking ban on construction sites, Hong Kong labour authorities have said.

They should also ask individuals to stop using e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, even though they do not require lighting, the Labour Department said on Thursday, six months after the deadly Tai Po fire that was suspected to have been caused by workers smoking on site.

The clarifications were listed in a document submitted to the Legislative Council on Thursday, in response to questions raised in a study by a legal adviser scrutinising three amendments aimed at improving fire safety.

The legislative amendments follow the inferno at the Wang Fuk Court housing estate in November that killed 168 people and displaced about 5,000 residents.

Upon the amendments taking effect on July 17 after Legco’s approval, smoking will be prohibited at all construction sites and contractors will be required to take “all reasonable steps” to ensure compliance.

The department said that “all reasonable steps” referred to “establishing comprehensive on-site smoking ban management procedures, introducing smart management systems and installing CCTV cameras on site”.