Brussels, 15/04/2005 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday, without debate, the Ecofin Council approved the sending of a note to the State Department to protest against the new regulation banning cigarette lighters on board aircraft. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) added lighters to its list of objects prohibited on board aircraft that are travelling to and from the United States or on domestic US flights from 14 April on. In their note, the Member States will state their concern about the impact that such a regulation will have on airports and passengers. Current technology does not allow lighters to be effectively detected and enforcement of the new regulation will therefore involve manual searches, which take time and resources. Furthermore, Member States doubt the measure will be effective with regards security as, although an incident caused by a lighter can be easily controlled if it occurs on board a plane, the same is not true if the lighter is placed in luggage placed in the hold.