The chairman of the Office of Tobacco Control, Dr Michael Boland, said he was confident the smoking ban will go ahead as planned on January 1st of next year despite the opposition of vintners.
"I see no reason why it shouldn't. I've heard nothing from the vintners or from any other source to stop it . . . even the smokers themselves, I think, recognise that this is an important step for the country to take in terms of our health," he said.
Mr Boland added that it was reasonable that the concerns of vintners were heard. "On the one hand I wouldn't want to see anyone's business seriously damaged. On the other hand this issue is much, much larger than that."
Welcoming a statement yesterday from a group of senior academics in Irish medicine and allied professions, Mr Boland said the entire community of health professionals is speaking with one voice about the enormous harm caused by the tobacco epidemic.
Some of the most senior academic figures in Irish medicine signed the statement, which supports the proposed ban on smoking in the workplace, including bars and restaurants.
The statement said that non- smokers live longer and are healthier than smokers and it recognises the key role that price increase plays in reducing consumption, especially among young people.
The group concluded that implementing the ban on smoking is essential "if we are to reduce the toll of illness that smoking inflicts on thousands of Irish people every year".