ACT MP Penny Webster today launched a petition calling on the Government to abandon legislation that would force bars to segregate smokers from non-smokers.

"ACT New Zealand will vote against the supplementary order paper of the Smokefree Environment (Enhanced Protection) Amendment Bill.

"People can already choose whether they attend bars and cafes which allow smoking. In fact, many bars around the country are smokefree by choice. It is the right of business owners to make decisions concerning their premises.

"I surveyed almost 900 bars, cafes and restaurants, and found that ninety per cent of respondents want this draconian legislation halted.

"The Government never bothered to consult with bar owners who will face crippling bills if these laws go ahead.

"New Zealanders have had enough of the Government interfering in every aspect of their lives," Penny Webster said.

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Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>