In a speech to the Smokefree Towards 2000 conference in Wellington yesterday, Mr Delamere said he would like to see the precincts of Parliament become smokefree.

Later, Mr Delamere said he encouraged Mr Peters to give up smoking.

If Parliament was declared smokefree, Mr Peters could be forced to smoke outside, but Mr Delamere was not concerned about the image this would create.

"He might have to give up. It will be good for him."

However, Mr Peters was too busy grappling with the economy to think about quitting smoking. "I've got more important issues to be concerned about," he said.

Mr Delamere said it was important that MPs lead by example in all spheres of life, including being non-smoking role models.

Other smokers in Parliament, such as New Zealand First president Doug Woolerton, Speaker Doug Kidd, and Labour MP Mike Moore, could also benefit from giving up, Mr Delamere said.

He said he was greatly encouraged by Maori Affairs Minister Tau Henare and Associate Education Minister Brian Donnelly having quit.

Mr Delamere said he "didn't go around all day every day" trying to persuade fellow MPs to stop smoking, but he often engaged in light-hearted banter with them about their habit.

He said he himself had not smoked since he was nine years old. "I was out the back with some kids and we tried it and someone's parents saw us, so we took off till we fell into some blackberry bushes. That was the last time -- I learned my lesson."

Mr Delamere said if he "got his way" he would require plain packaging of cigarettes, a total ban on cigarette advertising, and that tobacco products be stored out of sight in shops. He also wanted programmes to help Maoris stop smoking, and all workplaces and schools to be smokefree.

Mr Delamere said measures already taken to combat smoking would also have an impact. They included banning sales of packets of 10 cigarettes, banning sales to people under 18, tobacco tax increases, and increased enforcement of fines for selling cigarettes to minors.

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