Councils have reportedly been granted £29.5m to pay for staff who will give on-the-spot £50 fines to those flouting the smoking ban. A BBC investigation revealed that officers will be able to go undercover to photograph and film people in bars, restaurants and shops, to enforce the ban, which comes into force in July. But Local Government Association chairman, Lord Bruce-Lockhart, said councils had no interest in ‘snooping' and the officers would be responsible for making people understand what the ban meant.
