Introduction:
Introduced in Greece in 2009, the smoking ban law was never fully implemented in indoor public spaces. This study aimed to explore exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) in Greece and, to investigate the public opinion regarding the non-implementation of the smoking ban law.

Methods:
A cross sectional survey on exposure to SHS and attitudes of the Greek public towards the non-implementation of the smoking ban law, was conducted in June 2017 by the Institute of Public Health-American College of Greece. A nationally representative sample of 2,054 adults from 13 regions in Greece, were interviewed through using computer-aided phone interview (CAPI).

Results:
The majority of Greek citizens (88.1%) responded that they consider the national aim for smoking reduction as important or very important. Almost all Greek people (96.6%) reported that they were exposed to SHS in the past year. 74.2% reported being upset whenever they visited an indoor public space where the smoking ban law was violated. 76.1% of the Greek public reported being upset that Greece is the only European Union Member State that has not comprehensively enforced the smoking ban law. 93% of Greek people did not believe that the State has done everything in its power to enforce the smoking ban law in hospitality venues. Furthermore, 83.8% of Greek citizens consider the smoking ban violation as a sign of cultural decline in Greece.

Conclusions:
In addition to the supportive legal premise for implementation of the smoking ban law, the current study on the attitudes of the Greek public showed that the necessary supportive cultural context also exists for the Greek State to successfully enforce the smoking ban law in all public spaces.

Funding:
This work is supported by a George D. Behrakis Foundation Grant.