Facts at a Glance

Smoking is the leading cause of premature, preventable death in this globally.^{1 2} Tobacco kills up to half of its users, this equates to 8 million deaths a year globally.^{1 3} More than 7 million of those deaths are the result of direct tobacco use while around 1.2 million are the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke.² 4 Around 80% of the world’s 1.3 billion smokers live in low- and middle-income countries.^{2 3 4}

In the UK, in 2019, 14.1% of adults now smoke; 15.9% of men and 12.5% of women which equates to around 6.9 million people in the population.^{3 5}

In 2019, adult smoking rates by each country in the UK were:^{3 5}

• England: 13.9%
• Wales: 15.%
• Scotland: 15.4%
• Northern Ireland: 15.6%

Since 2011, the largest fall in smoking prevalence has been among 18- to 24-year-olds.³ Those aged 25 to 34 years continued to have the highest proportion of current smokers,⁵ (19.0%, around 1.6 million people). In the UK, around 1 in 4 (23.4%) people in routine and manual occupations smoked, compared with less than 1 in 10 people (9.3%) in managerial and professional occupations.⁵

In England, 10.4% of mothers were smokers at the time of delivery in 2019-20.⁶

• England: 74,600.⁷
• Wales: 5,600.⁸
• Scotland: 9,360.⁹
• Northern Ireland: 2,300.¹⁰

Tobacco smoke contains many chemicals that are harmful to both smokers and non-smokers.^{11 12} Breathing even a little tobacco smoke can be harmful.¹¹ Of the more than 7,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke, at least 250 are known to be harmful, including hydrogen cyanide, carbon monoxide, and ammonia. At least 69 of these chemicals can cause cancer (which include arsenic, benzene and cadmium).^{11 12}

• About a half of all life-long smokers will die prematurely and on average, cigarette smokers die 10 years younger than non-smokers.¹³
• It is estimated that for lifelong smokers, each cigarette will take roughly 11 minutes of their life.¹⁴
• Smoking is the biggest cause of cancer in the world. It can cause cancer almost anywhere in your body. Being smoke free can prevent 15 types of cancer.^{15 16}
• 72% of lung cancer cases in the UK are caused by smoking - 71% caused by active smoking, and 1% caused by second-hand smoke).^{15 16}
• Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body and affects a person’s overall health.¹⁷
• Tobacco is the only legal drug that kills many of its users when used exactly as intended by manufacturers.¹⁵
• Smoking is associated with an increased risk of early natural menopause in women.¹⁸
• Smoking in pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage, premature birth, stillbirth and low birth-weight, and maternal smoking after birth has been linked with a threefold increase in the risk of sudden infant death.^{19 20}
• Smoking is a major risk factor for impotence in men.²¹
• Smoking increases significantly the risk of impairment of olfactory function, negatively affecting smokers’ sense of smell and taste.²²
• Smoking is a risk factor for dental hygiene problems, including more serious conditions such as chronic periodontal disease.²³

Two of the largest tobacco companies in the world are headquartered in Great Britain.

• British American Tobacco (BAT) is the UK’s largest tobacco company and it is headquartered in London. As of 2019, it is the largest tobacco manufacturing company and also has the biggest retail and consumer products operations in the world based on net sales. The total revenue in 2017 was £25.87bn.²⁴
• Imperial Brands plc, formerly Imperial Tobacco Group plc, is ra British multinational tobacco company headquartered in Bristol, United Kingdom. It is the world’s fourth-largest international cigarette company measured by market share after Philip Morris International, British American Tobacco, and Japan Tobacco.²⁵

1965: all television adverts for cigarettes banned
1986: adverts banned in cinemas

The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act (2002) was responsible for getting rid of the remaining forms of tobacco advertising:

• February 2003 – Ban on print media and billboard advertising
• May 2003 – Ban on tobacco direct marketing (promotions)
• July 2003 – Sponsorship of events within the UK
• December 2004 – Large adverts in shops, pubs and clubs banned
• 2005 – Sponsorship of global events, including Formula 1 and snooker tournaments

A smoking ban, making it illegal to smoke in all enclosed workplaces (which includes offices/shops/restaurants/ bars) in England, came into force in July 2007. Similar bans had already been introduced by the rest of the United Kingdom: in Scotland in March 2006, Wales and Northern Ireland in April 2007.z

The legal age for purchasing tobacco was raised from 16 to 18 in England, Scotland and Wales in October 2007. In Northern Ireland this came into force in September 2008.

Cigarette vending machines were banned in England in October 2011, in Scotland in April 2013, in Wales in February 2012 and in Northern Ireland in March 2012.

A tobacco point of sale display ban was introduced in large shops (>280 m2 floor area) in England in April 2012. This entered into force in Wales in December 2012, in Northern Ireland in October 2012 and in Scotland in April 2013. The sale display ban was extended to small retailers across all jurisdictions in April 2015.

A smoking ban in cars (with passengers under 18) came into force in England and Wales in October 2015. Scotland introduced the same law in December 2016. The ban is not yet in place in Northern Ireland.

Rules that cigarettes and tobacco must be sold in plain green packets came into force across the UK in May 2017.