Illegal shisha cafes are not welcome in Preston, an environment chief at Preston Council said today.
There are already three shisha cafes in Preston that the council is aware of - but environment bosses admit there could be others not on their radar.
Opening and running a shisha cafe is not illegal, but the same rules as the smoking ban apply.
The Health Act 2006 prohibits smoking in an area which has a roof or ceiling and is enclosed or substantially enclosed.
The three cafes in Preston are Pasha on Aqueduct Street, the Shisha Garden on Manchester Road and Sandos on Church Street.
There was also SL Shisha on Manchester Road which recently burn down in a suspected arson attack.
Last year SL Shisha was fined £1,000 for breaching regulations and allowing people to smoke in doors.
Andy Howard, environmental health manager at Preston Council, said the authority is “trying to keep a cap on” shisha cafes in Preston
He added: “We try to tackle them as soon as we become aware of them.”
Mr Howard said that whilst it may seem the best option is to go in and shut them down, the council wants to gather enough evidence for a successful prosecution.
He added: “We will advise anybody to comply with the law.
“We would like them to take heed of the advice they are given.
“We want shisha cafes to comply. We are here to help.
“But if you don’t want to comply we are going to come down on you like a tonne of bricks.
“If anybody wants to run illegal shisha cafes in Preston you won’t be doing it for that long.”
Comments