SMOKERS caught lighting up in vehicles carrying children will benefit from a three month period of grace, police have confirmed.

The approach mirrors that taken in 2007 when a workplace smoking ban was introduced.

From today (Thursday October 1) police officers will have the power to hand out £50 on the spot fines to anyone breaking the law in this fashion.

But initially they will instead “educate and advise” the wrongdoer, following guidance issued to forces.

A spokeswoman for Cleveland and Durham Police’s specialist operations unit confirmed: “We will be following the advice issued by the Department of Health that the approach should be advisory and non-confrontational by issuing warnings rather than fines whilst public awareness of the extension to the smokefree law takes place.

“It is the proposal that this approach should be adopted for a minimum of three months to help build a high level of compliance.”

Inspector Dave Barf, of North Yorkshire Police’s Roads Policing Group, said: “We will be following the guidance issued and acting upon the new legislation and enforcing when reasonable and necessary.”

The Police Federation – which represents rank and file officers – has said the new law, which makes it illegal to smoke in vehicle with anyone aged under 18 present, will add an unnecessary extra layer of bureaucracy for already hard-pressed officers to deal with.