Government plans to allow smoking in pubs that do not serve food have been

condemned by an influential group of MPs.

The Commons' Health Select Committee said proposals to introduce a partial ban were "unfair, unjust, inefficient and unworkable".

In a damning report, they insisted a total ban was the "only effective means" of protecting people from the harmful effects of smoke.

The proposed partial ban will allow smoking in clubs and pubs. That "defies logic", warned the House of Commons health select committee, which also wants smoking outlawed in prisons and military bases.

"The exemption for clubs and pubs where food is not served is illogical," the MPs said in a report.

"It means that workers who are most exposed to second-hand smoke, and therefore most at risk, will not be protected."

Yesterday's 62-page report, called Smoking in Public Places, is a huge boost for the Telegraph & Argus Clear the Air Campaign which is calling for a total ban on smoking in all public places.

Madge Boyle, Bradford District Health Development Partnerships Tobacco Progr-amme Manager said the ban on smoking in enclosed public places did not go far enough.

"The employee who works in a smoke-filled pub or private members' club has the right to have his or her health protected," she said.

Britain's 300 primary care trusts - including the four in the Bradford district - have also added their weight to the call for an immediate ban on smoking in all restaurants and cafes.

It follows a poll by the NHS Trusts Association (NHSTA) which represents the PCTs responsible for the expenditure of the National Health Service budget.

All 300 trusts supported the call for the Government to bring forward its ban during the next session of Parliament.

"Each one of the 300 Primary Care Trust (PCTs) has endorsed our position on the immediate banning of smoking in cafes and restaurants," said Dr David Todd, chief executive of the association.

"If the Irish and the Scots can successfully ban smoking in public houses, restaurants and cafes etc, it must surely be considered nothing short of a disgrace that the English seem to lack the political will to carry forward such a self-evidently essential piece of legislation for the good of the public's health."

The current Government proposals splits the Cabinet and even prompted chief medical officer Sir Liam Donaldson to consider quitting because it flew in the face of his advice.

The complete ban recommended by Sir Liam would be easier to enforce while the exemptions are "a recipe for chaos", the health select committee said yesterday.

Some 95 MPs, including 64 Labour backbenchers, have signed a motion calling for a free vote on the issue

Dr Vivienne Nathanson, Head of Science and Ethics at the BMA said: "If the Government has been unmoved by doctors' concern for the public's health, perhaps it will at least listen to parliament's Health Select Committee.

"A partial ban on smoking in public places will bring nothing short of unworkable chaos, and the most disadvantaged in society will continue to be most at risk. The public knows it, the Chief Medical Officer knows it, MPs across all parties know it. And the Government knows it.

"We urge Patricia Hewitt to rescue the Government from the fiasco of a partial ban. A full ban on smoking in public places is the only way forward."