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Ireland yesterday outlawed smoking in pubs. While reading about it, I found this little piece of information: "The catering trade will have to remove all ashtrays and put up 'no smoking' signs within six weeks of the ban. . . The Office of Tobacco Control, which has been given powers to deputise smoking inspectors, will also police the law."

Whether you're for or against such bans, surely the existence of an Office of Tobacco Control is a little too Orwellian for you.