When the smoking ban in enclosed places was introduced in Ireland, many remarked that such a prohibition would never even be mooted in Southern Europe, with its bars and cafes perpetually wreathed in tobacco fumes. Well it’s happened in Italy and my fellow Three Monkey’s blogger “The View from Bologna” reports on how the new law is going down. It seems that without the stick of hefty fines, the prohibition may remain more de jure than de facto. Perhaps Prime Minister Burlusconi should ask Ireland’s Minister of Justice Michael McDowell about how to enforce the law with a vigour Il Duce himself would have been proud of!