Do you know the new laws on smoking?

Essex County Council is reminding people that from October 1 it will be illegal to smoke in a vehicle with anyone under 18 present.

The law is changing to protect children and young people from the dangers of secondhand smoke.

Once the legislation comes into force, both the driver and the smoker could be fined £50.

Every time a child breathes in secondhand smoke, they breathe in thousands of chemicals, which continually risks their health.

More than 430,000 children are exposed to second-hand smoke in cars each week, according to the British Lung Foundation.

Councillor Anne Brown, Cabinet Member for Communities and Healthy Living, said: “Second-hand smoke increases a child’s risk of illnesses ranging from common colds and ear infections through to asthma attacks, meningitis and cot death.

"In an enclosed space such as a car, the concentrations of toxins are significantly higher and children are much more vulnerable to the dangerous toxins than adults.

“We welcome this new legislation to ensure children in Essex enjoy good health and wellbeing and we’re asking the public to spread the message.

"Our commissioned services are continuing to support people in quitting and we urge anyone who wants to give up to contact their local stop smoking services.”

Over three quarters of adults in Great Britain already support regulations to stop smoking in cars with children present.

For more information on the new legislation visit https://www.gov.uk/smokefreecars