As a member of the Global Smokefree Partnership, the International Non Governmental Coalition Against Tobacco (INGCAT) has surveyed national laws on second hand smoke, and analysed their key features, strengths and weaknesses. Model legislation exists for this and other tobacco control topics, but in practice much real-world legislation deviates from suggested best practice. The major aspects of legislative text that determine its potential to be effective are the precision of its terminology, the breadth of its scope and the strength of its provisions for enforcement. Worldwide, several attempts have been made to rank legislation on these criteria and these systems will be described. Examples will also be provided from several countries' legislation to illustrate some best and worst practice.
