AS many as 80 per cent of people with asthma - and there are now 3.4 million people with the condition in the UK - say other people's tobacco smoke makes their symptoms worse.

That is why I would like to see smoke-free public places as the norm in our community, with any special provision being given to the minority of people who smoke, rather than the other way round as currently exists.

And it is not just pubs, cafes and restaurants I'm talking about. A new survey by the National Asthma Campaign has shown that while smoking is rife in these places, it is also bus and railway stations, hotels and airports where people are subjected to other people's tobacco smoke.

While readers may think it's not surprising people with asthma want smoke-free public places, the interesting thing about this survey is that even smokers supported this view.

In fact, nearly three quarters of smokers who do not rule out trying to quit smoking think that an increase in smoking restrictions in public places would help them if they were trying to give up.

Clearly other people's tobacco smoke is a concern for many people, but for those with asthma it is more than a concern, it is about their right to breathe clean air. At present it seems that wherever you go there is simply no escape from tobacco smoke.

E KAY WYATT, Secretary, Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale branch, National Asthma Campaign.

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