Councillor Jeanette Sunderland, leader of the Liberal Democrats on Bradford Council, has written to the West Yorkshire Pension Fund asking it to cut the amount of money being invested by the Pension Fund in British American Tobacco.

She said: “The Pension Fund invests 1.3 per cent of its equity holdings, that's £112.7 million pounds in British American Tobacco.

“It's absolutely illogical to keep on investing millions of pounds in producing tobacco products when the Council and local health services are spending a fortune trying to get people to stop smoking.

“I am shocked at the size of the investment. I don't know how on earth this can be seen to be ethical for an organisation who are investing on behalf of the Council who has legal responsibility for health and well being of the District.”