Late last year the council’s superannuation investment sub-committee obtained senior legal opinion on whether the Tayside Superannuation Fund, which it administers and is worth well over £1 billion, would be entitled to withdraw from tobacco investments.

In a written opinion Neil Brailsford QC, a specialist in local government and commercial law, said that under current regulations only financial interests should be taken into account in making investment decisions.

The council’s depute chief executive (finance) David Dorward was instructed to write to finance and public services minister Tom McCabe and to all other Scottish local authorities about the issue.

In his letter to the minister, Mr Dorward requested the minister to either clarify the existing legislation or introduce further legislation to enable disinvestment in tobacco on ethical grounds.

At today’s meeting of the sub-committee, councillors received a reply from deputy finance and public services minister George Lyon as the person responsible for public service pension schemes.

Mr Lyon said here were no plans at present to amend the existing legislation to restrict investment in tobacco stocks. He said there was a deliberate policy that responsibility and discretion for investing pension funds rested with the individual administering authorities rather than Scottish ministers. Mr Lyon concluded by saying he did not feel that a meeting with the sub-committee was needed.

Council finance convener Fraser Macpherson, chairing today’s sub-committee meeting, said the response from the Executive was disappointing.

Councillors welcomed the support they have received from Angus and Perth and Kinross councils for the position Dundee has adopted on the matter. The minister’s response will now go to the council’s finance committee for further consideration.