Smoking: The killer facts
MPs will have a free vote today on banning smoking in pubs and restaurants. One-quarter of adults in the UK smoke, down from half 30 years ago. Smoking costs the NHS almost £2bn a year. For the long-term smoker, life expectancy is 8 to 12 years less than a non-smoker. A survey of 3,000 people last year found that 71 per cent were in favour of a total smoking ban.
Ref. news.independent.co.uk/uk/health_medical/article345289.ece
British smokers down by 1. 9 million since smoking ban. Ten years after cigarettes were banished from all UK pubs, clubs, bars and restaurants, new figures reveal there are 1.9 million fewer smokers in Britain compared to when the smoking ban was introduced in 2007, with smoking rates now the lowest ever recorded. Source 3c.
Heavy drinkers four times more likely to smoke in England, study finds. Those who are among the heaviest drinkers in England are four times more likely to smoke than the general population and should be prioritized by the government in its plans to achieve 'smoke-free' status by 2030, experts say. Source 2h.