Clubs to escape ban on smoking

Smoking will be allowed in private clubs under new proposals to restrict the habit.

A White Paper, to be published next week, is expected to stop well short of a total ban.

It is understood that Health Secretary John Reid has bowed to pressure to allow smoking in some pubs and restaurants which meet strict conditions and obtain a licence - while private clubs will not require a licence at all.

In a second blow to health campaigners, local authorities will not be given the power to issue bans. Instead, they will be given "limited discretion" over where smoking can and cannot take place.

The proposals are still being fine-tuned amid frantic last-minute lobbying by brewers and restaurateurs. They are desperate to avoid banning smoking in all public places, a measure agreed by the Scottish Parliament this week.

The reported deal stops well short of the outright ban advocated by the medical community. The Health Secretary and his Cabinet colleagues fear a bitter backlash from voters if they attempt to introduce such a crackdown.

However, the compromise in the White Paper could simply be a stay of execution for smokers. Britain's big brewers have already told Mr Reid that they recognise smoking is on the way out in pubs. They expect a full ban in the next five years.