Macau’s legislature on Monday passed a revised tobacco control bill that will ban smoking in almost all workplaces, reports the Macau Business.

Excempted are casinos, where smoking will be permitted on up to half the floor area.
The bill will come into effect in January next year, but casinos will be granted one extra year to set up the designated smoking areas. Bars, dance halls, sauna and massage parlours will be granted a three-year grace period before a full smoking ban will be applied to them.
Debate over the bill took 14 months, with lawmakers mulling over whether there should be some kind of exemption for the gaming industry.
New sales requirements of tobacco products such as labels, packages and the maximum level of tar will also come into effect from 2013. (pi)