SMOKING electronic cigarettes in taxis in the Ribble Valley could be banned under plans to be discussed today.

The borough council’s licensing committee will consider the proposal after the council received a query from a taxi driver over whether the existing smoking ban included electronic cigarettes. The council’s current conditions for taxi drivers state that they must ‘not smoke in the vehicle, or permit any passenger to smoke in the vehicle’.

Smoking is defined in the 2006 Health Act as ‘smoking tobacco, or anything which contains tobacco’, and being ‘in possession of lit tobacco’.The statutory definition of smoking does not include electronic cigarettes and other forms of vapour- producing smoking devices.

Councillors will decide whether to amend the standard conditions to include electronic cigarettes.