• Issue 1
• Politics and Society

"Nonsense! No way, they shouldn't do that," said a regular smoker at a shisha café in Edgware Road, where Middle-Eastern tourists and locals gather in their free time.

His two friends, shisha pipes in hand, are also clearly upset. Shisha is a multi-stemmed, often glass-based, water device used for smoking tobacco often blended with flavoured herbal fruits.

Mohamed Bakr, an Egyptian who manages a three-storey restaurant in Edgware Road, said he was going to fire 50 of his employees because of the new law. "I will not be able to afford their salaries when the ban takes effect; people come here to smoke, not to eat," he said.

About 500 shishas are served each week across the capital and are especially popular at weekends. The ban is expected to cost each shisha cafe an average of £3,000 in lost revenue. 

But the biggest loss will be to Middle Eastern culture and identity.

Omar Mohamed, a Sudanese customer, pays five to eight pounds to smoke a shisha pipe each time he visits the cafe. He said: "I come in four to five times a week. Sitting with friends and sharing cups of minted tea reminds me of my country".

Although Shahinaz, a British Egyptian, has a shisha pipe at home she is a cafe regular. "I cannot smoke shisha without my friends," she said.

She takes a long breath and then passes the pipe on to her friend Sheila. "It creates a friendly environment. How can we live without it? This law is disgusting." Sheila said the ban will not work effectively as long as people can still smoke at home.

Adam Hassan, a 20-year-old waiter, said he is afraid of losing his job when the law comes into force. "I am serving more than twelve flavours. My customers are Arabs, Africans and British."

However, Mohamed Ridha, shisha seller, says there is also a positive side to the ban. "It may increase the number of people who want to smoke shisha at home," he said.

He is now thinking of raising the price of shisha equipment.