ASH logic

From the BBC:

The head teacher of a school for children with behavioural issues has defended her decision to permit pupils to smoke.

Students aged 14 to 16 at the Honeyhill Pupil Referral Unit in Peterborough are allowed two supervised off-site smoking breaks each day, with parental consent…

So far so good.

A spokesperson for anti-smoking group Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) said:

"If the unit does not allow alcohol or drugs, why would they allow smoking? It is totally out of kilter with current health advice and they should think seriously about reversing the policy."

Er, because…

a) allowing them to take drugs on the premises is almost certainly illegal under some law or other,

b) smoking might be a bit unhealthy but it certainly helps smokers concentrate better (i.e. on their lessons) as opposed to drinking alcohol which usually has the opposite effect (for which the school would presumably require some sort of licence anway, like those restaurants with a corking charge?), and

c) This is an educational establishment and not a health advice centre. That'd be like criticising a hospital for having a lending library for in-patients.