There was a slight fall in compliance levels with the smoking ban recorded between April and September, according to new figures published yesterday.
The Office of Tobacco Control (OTC) said overall compliance levels fell from 97 per cent in April to 94 per cent in September.
But it claimed this was as a result of a concentration of inspections by environmental health officers and other officials on non-compliant premises in later months.
Some non-compliant premises underwent repeat inspections that would have skewed the overall figures, the OTC said.
The compliance data are based on overall findings during 26,627 inspections of pubs, hotels and restaurants in the first six months after the ban was introduced.
The number of complaints to a national hotline over the period is also taken into account. Some 1,448 complaints were made to the Smoke-Free Compliance Line on 1890 333 100 between April and September. Several calls were received about the same premises and some of these complaints resulted in prosecutions.
To date, 11 premises have been prosecuted for non-compliance.
The OTC progress report shows compliance levels with the prohibition on smoking in enclosed places varies across health boards, ranging from 87 per cent in the Western Health Board region to a high of 98 per cent in the Southern, North Western and East Coast Area Health Boards.
For his part, Mr Dave Molloy, chief inspector with the OTC, said the new legislation was enjoying widespread support. "The genuine reservations expressed over potential difficulties with implementation and enforcement have not materialised," he said.