Pubs and clubs claimed today that a ban on smoking has turned away regular customers in Scotland, with drink sales reportedly dropping by more than 10 per cent since new rules were introduced five months ago.

However, the findings have been rejected by the Scottish Health Minister who said that there was no evidence that pubs or restaurants will go out of business as a direct result of the ban.

Food sales have fallen by 3 per cent under the ban, according to the Scottish Licensed Trade Association (STLA), which carried out a survey of 365 members of the 5,000 establishments across Scotland.

Paul Waterson, the SLTA chief executive, said there could be "worse to come" and it was still difficult to tell whether any pubs would be forced to close as the real impact would not be felt until the winter.

"This ban will put some hard-working licensees out of business and many bar staff out of jobs," he said.

"We were told that business would improve as a result of the ban, something we never believed. Now even our prediction of 7 per cent loss of business had proved optimistic."

But Andy Kerr, Scotland’s Health Minister, urged the licensed trade to exploit the marketing opportunities provided by the ban.

"I have not met a single person who wants to turn the clock back and re-introduce smoking in restaurants and pubs — indeed the feedback to me has been quite the opposite.

"While it is too early to say precisely what the impact in Scotland is, there is no evidence to suggest that pubs, cafés or restaurants will go out of business as a direct result of the smoking ban coming into effect."

He added that in New York, where a ban had been in place for more than two years, takings and employment had risen and the number of liquor licences had increased.

The survey, described by the SLTA as "a massive stay-away by Scotland’s pub regulars", showed that 46 per cent of licensees reported a drop in visits by regulars since the ban came into effect on March 26, and only 5 per cent reported an increase.

However, the SLTA survey found that losses had not been counter-balanced by new business from non-smokers, with 20 per cent reporting more new customers or more frequent visits but 17 per cent reporting fewer.

David Lister, Scotland Correspondent of The Times, said that it was easy to jump to conclusions with the figures, but the reality is they are marshalled by either the pro or anti-smoking camps.

"I would caution that the survey this is based on is really based on 365 out of 5,000 establishments in the whole of Scotland, he said.

"This 10 per cent figure they are jumping up and down about comes with a very, very large qualification attached to it, it's not simply a factor that sales are down across the board.

"There was a very similar war of statistics in Ireland when the smoking ban came in."

Lynn Adams, of the George Bar in Hamilton, Lanarkshire, said the fact that her smoking customers were able to sit outside had spared her the worst consequences of the ban, but she feared the colder months ahead.

"My outdoor area has helped a lot and trade is ticking over but, as my smoking customers say: 'What happens when winter arrives?' This is when we will really feel it."

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