Crackdown on cigarette lighters

The council is concerned about lighters with novelty designs

A Berkshire town is to crack down on the sale of novelty cigarette lighters that may appeal to children.

Slough Borough Council says its trading standards will enforce EU legislation banning non-child resistant lighters.

Lighters must be child-resistant but the council says it is concerned about those designed in a novelty fashion.

Russell Clarke, technical enforcement officer for the council, said: "We will be checking all the shops and giving them advice on what to do."

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents says that five children die every year in the UK because of playing with lighters, with a further 250 injured.

Cllr John Edwards, the commissioner for public protection, said people should ensure lighters do not get into "the wrong hands".

"This will save young children's lives by making it considerably more difficult for them to operate the lighters," he said.

"Residents should stay vigilant and let the trading standard's team at the council know if they see any of the banned lighters being sold."