Smoking banned in Scottish prisons

It is thought that about 72 per cent of prisoners in Scotland smoke regularly.

Vaping will still be permitted and the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) has offered kits for free to prisoners who want them.

The ban was originally announced in a major report into prison workers’ exposure to second-hand smoke last year.

It found that second-hand smoke within some cells was similar to the levels in bars before the smoking ban was introduced in 2006.

Following the publication of the report, the SPS committed to making prisons smoke-free before the end of this year.

Previously, prisoners could smoke in cells and some outside – though staff were not permitted to smoke.

England has already introduced a similar ban.