Health Bureau notes difficulties inspecting illegal smoking in VIP rooms

A representative from the Health Bureau (SSM) said yesterday that its smoke inspectors face difficulties when inspecting certain areas of the gaming venues, especially inside VIP rooms.

“The security guards warn everyone about our arrival. Obviously, that is a difficulty for us and for our work. If people are warned as soon as we arrive at the door and we still need to go in and sometimes reach a room that is located on the 38th floor, this takes time,” he said, justifying why the smoke inspectors rarely discover any law infringement in such venues although it is commonly known that such incidents occur.

“But I’m sure that there are no cases in which are our inspectors inform in advance [of our visit to] some venues,” he noted in reply to lawmaker Leong Sun Iok’s question during yesterday’s plenary session at the Legislative Assembly.

In response to a comment about smoking lounges located on gaming floors being ineffective – due to the constant movement of people in and out of the room – the same representative noted, “there is a possibility of smoke particles traveling through clothes and through people’s bodies into the room but that is negligible.” The representative explained that the negative pressure inside the room and a warning against the doors being left open for too long were reducing the potential for smoke to travel outside of the lounges.

Replying to another enquiry regarding the “old shops” to be considered to hold “traditional value” in Macau, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Alexis Tam said that for the first phase, a total of 12 establishments would be listed, with the final list being published next month.

Tam was criticized by lawmakers for a lack of coordination and dialogue between government departments and an apparent disconnect on several already-announced policies. “I believe that some small incidents that occurred have been solved already,” the Secretary replied. “I never heard of an old shop that had to close due to tourism or to Municipal Affairs Bureau [IAM] services matters,” he said, although noting that such services cannot issue licensing aimlessly.

“We must safeguard aspects such as fire and food safety, among others,” he concluded.

A representative of the IAM added that there was one noodle shop that had to close for a period of time but has since reopened.