Italy's Turin orders outdoor smokers to keep their distance

ROME (Reuters) - The northern Italian city of Turin has banned outdoor smoking unless other people are at least five metres away, in what Mayor Stefano Lo Russo called a "common sense" decision.

"It is about respecting those who do not smoke, and in some ways also about promoting a culture of respect," Lo Russo, who is from the centre-left Democratic Party, told a local radio station on Tuesday.

Those who flout the regulation risk a 100-euro ($106) fine.

The ban covers cigarettes, cigars, pipes, heated tobacco products and e-cigarettes, according to a resolution approved by the city council on Monday.

It says people may smoke closer to others "with their explicit consent", while it bans open-air smoking outright in the presence of children and pregnant women.

Turin is not the first major Italian city to restrict outdoor smoking. In 2021, Milan prohibited it at bus stops, taxi ranks, stadiums, parks and cemeteries.

However, the anti-smoking laws tend not to be enforced strictly. In Milan, only seven fines were issued in the first four months of their application, Corriere della Sera daily reported at the time. ($1 = 0.9404 euros)

(Reporting by Alvise Armellini; Editing by Keith Weir)