asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether civil servants in Northern Ireland who take smoking breaks outside their office complex are monitored to ensure that the number of hours per week for which they are contracted are worked. [HL210]

The Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS) introduced a ban on smoking in all government premises with effect from 1 January 2005. The policy, as detailed in the NICS staff handbook, states that,

“leaving the premises to smoke will not be permitted outside of the lunchtime period taken by staff”.

In all cases, the time spent on lunch must be recorded.

Line management has a responsibility to ensure that staff adhere to the policy and any breaches of the ban may be dealt with in accordance with the conduct and discipline section of the staff handbook.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they have any proposals to ban Northern Ireland civil servants from smoking while in a static position within 50 yards of the entrance to public buildings. [HL273]

There are currently no such proposals under consideration.