Pizzas without smoke

The company, which has branches across Gwent, including Newport city centre and the Spytty Retail Park, says it is the first nationwide restaurant chain to ban smoking in all its 500 outlets.

The company said its decision was designed to protect customers and staff from the dangers of passive smoking.

Older restaurants had a designated smoking area, but newly opened outlets are smoke-free environments.

The announcement means all Pizza Hut's 500 outlets will adopt a non-smoking policy, although smoking will still be allowed at its delivery-only outlets.

And at the company's restaurant in Newport Retail Park, Spytty, staff and customers - even smokers, welcomed the move.

Supervisor Matt Phillips, 20, said: "More places should take it up. It makes the place healthier for everyone."

And customer Alison Lewis, 39, of Chepstow Road, welcomed the move even though she smokes herself.

Mrs Lewis said: "I am a social smoker, but when I'm out with the children I don't smoke. It is much better in here now."

Not surprisingly, the anti-smoking lobby also welcomed the news. Deborah Arnott, director of ASH (Action on Smoking and Health) said: "This will be good news for customers and good news for business. "Second-hand smoke is a serious health hazard for staff in the restaurant trade, and research shows that over half of all adults want to eat in smoke-free restaurants."

Brian Rimmer, operations director for Pizza Hut, said: "Pizza Hut strongly believes that families should be able to have a leisurely meal in a restaurant without exposing their children to other people's smoke.

"It is equally important that our staff can work in a smoke-free environment."

But in New York, where smoking has been banned in all bars and restaurants for the past five months, they have reported a 40 per cent drop in takings.

So other UK outlets will be watching the situation with interest over the next few months before deciding whether to follow suit.