Following the EU president - formerly of sixty cigarettes a day fame - recently suggesting an EU-wide public smoking ban by 2009, the EU parliament have been subversively puffing away. Good on 'em!

"The European parliament has long been a champion of the antismoking lobby, hosting events and issuing frequent statements about the dangers.

However, senior officials said the U-turn was necessary after a revolt by MEPs and staff who began smoking everywhere in protest at the restrictions.

“They are adapting the decision to reality. After January 1 people started to smoke all over the building and we had more smoke and problems for nonsmokers than before,” said one senior parliamentary source.

Nigel Farage, the UK Independence party leader, said he had been one of the MEP rebels flouting the ban. “I have been ignoring it since January 1 and I have smoked in more places than before. I don’t want to be told by PC people what I can and cannot do,” he said.

MEPs’ cigarette ban goes up in smoke.