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WAUGH: Commentary- Bring back smoking rooms 

The trouble with zealots is they almost never think about the consequences of their zeal.

And there was no bigger caped crusader than Edmonton Tory MLA Dave Hancock during his brief stint as Ed Stelmach's health minister.

Last November, Hancock hailed his Tobacco Reduction Act as an "important part of our government's wellness agenda."

The legislation banned smoking from all "public places and workplaces" in the province on January 1.

The jury is out on whether Dave's Directive has actually done what it's supposed to - cut the number smokers.

Iris Evans's finance department beancounters certainly don't think so. . . .

Up to 35% of the small trash collected is now made up of butts, he said.

This problem hardly existed when smokers puffed in sealed, ventilated smoking rooms.

Now that Liepert is in charge, is it time to lighten up? Let the nicotine addicts back into smoking rooms where they only have themselves to harm.

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