In spite of tough opposition, Martin introduced a ban on tobacco smoking in all Irish workplaces, including pubs and restaurants. He announced on 30 January 2003, his intention to have the ban in place on 1 January 2004. He visited New York in September 2003 to look at how a similar ban worked there, and signed the UN's framework convention on tobacco control at their headquarters. The smoking ban was introduced on 29 March 2004, making Ireland the first country in the world to introduce a blanket ban on smoking in the workplace. Martin was presented with an award by the European Respiratory Society in Glasgow on 4 September 2004, for his work on the smoking ban.