The University of Groningen (UG) cannot deploy enforcers to stop smokers on university grounds from throwing their cigarette butts on the ground.
So said university president Jouke de Vries on Thursday in response to questions in the university council about the deployment of a ‘cigarette police.’
Enforcement is very difficult and almost goes too far, said De Vries. ‘People at the university know how bad smoking is for them, and I think they should consider the consequences of their behaviour themselves.’
This also applies to how smokers dispose of their cigarettes. ‘We are better off focusing on influencing their behaviour rather than on enforcement.’
Ban
Since 2020, a national smoking ban has been in effect on university grounds. The UG risks fines of 6,400 euros per violation if it does not enforce the ban, but it essentially lacks the means to do so. Utrecht University and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam have already received fines from the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority.
‘We’ve been given the responsibility to enforce the ban, but without the means to actually do it. Yet if things go wrong, we’re the ones fined. It’s an impossible situation’, said UG administrator Hans Biemans earlier this year.
Blue lines
In many places at the UG, blue lines have been drawn to indicate smoke-free zones. In March, signs with ‘smoke-free generation’ were replaced by ‘no smoking’, but that hasn’t helped much; people are still smoking in front of the University Library, at the Harmonie square, and on the bicycle bridge behind the Linnaeusborg.
In March, the executive board and the university council already discussed a stricter anti-smoking policy. Facility Support and building management enforcers are allowed to approach smokers and ask them to move elsewhere. However, this rarely happens in practice, partly because these enforcers are not always outside.
Not obligated
They also have the authority to request someone’s UG card and note down details in cases of ‘aggression or repeat offenders.’ This could lead to sanctions, such as a person being denied access to a building. However, one problem remains: no one is obligated to provide their personal details to the enforcers.