Around 350 young adults start smoking every day – and the habit still causes tens of thousands of cancer cases every year, campaigners warn as they urge MPs to phase it out
According to a new analysis, smoking could cause 300,000 cases of cancer over the next five years, 2,800 of which are due to passive smoking.
The alarming statistics, released by Cancer Research UK (CRUK), show that the ‘extent of harm’ caused by cigarettes and tobacco ‘cannot be ignored’.
The charity estimates that tobacco is responsible for a record 160 new cases of cancer every day, and around 2,500 young adults still start smoking every week.
The latest analysis comes ahead of the second reading of the Tobacco and Vapes Act – which aims to create the first smoke-free generation – in the House of Commons tomorrow.
The groundbreaking legislation was recently introduced to Parliament and will expand smoke-free areas, introduce a tobacco and vaping licensing system and gradually raise the age for selling tobacco products.
The CRUK study predicts that the number of cancer cases caused by smoking could reach 296,661 during this parliamentary term – between July 2024 and July 2029.
An estimated 243,045 are recorded for England, followed by 29,365 in Scotland, 15,161 in Wales and 9,090 in Northern Ireland.
A total of 2,846 cancer cases in Britain could be caused by exposure to passive smoking in people who have never smoked, the analysis claims.
The alarming statistics, released by Cancer Research UK (CRUK), show that the ‘extent of damage’ caused by cigarettes and tobacco ‘cannot be ignored’ (file image)
A charity is urging all MPs to vote in favor of the Tobacco and Vapes Act, which could prevent anyone born after January 1, 2009 from legally smoking by gradually raising the age at which tobacco can be purchased (file image)
Dr. Ian Walker, executive director of policy at CRUK, said: ‘Tobacco kills up to two-thirds of its users.
‘The extent of the damage caused by smoking cannot be ignored and these statistics expose the lives at stake.
‘We know that the number of smokers is declining as a result of government intervention. Raising the age at which tobacco products can be sold and funding smoking cessation services will help protect people from a lifetime of deadly and costly addiction.”
The charity is urging all MPs to vote in favor of the Tobacco and Vaping Act, which could prevent anyone born after January 1, 2009 from legally smoking by gradually raising the age at which tobacco can be purchased.
Restrictions on vaping advertising and sponsorship could also be introduced, as well as restrictions on flavours, displays and packaging to reduce their appeal to children and young people.
Meanwhile, vaping and smoking could also be banned on playgrounds and outside schools.
“The Tobacco and Vape Act could be one of the most impactful public health interventions of my lifetime,” added Dr. Walker added.
‘People’s lives are now in the hands of politicians and I urge all MPs to vote for a future without the harm of tobacco.’
You can see the benefits of smoking after just 20 minutes as your heart rate returns to normal. If you manage to quit this habit for a year, your risk of a heart attack is halved. The graph shows the changes you may notice in your body when you stop smoking
The latest annual population survey from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that in Britain in 2023, around 11.9 percent of people aged 18 or over – the equivalent of around six million people – smoked cigarettes.
It is the lowest percentage of current smokers since ONS records began in 2011.
However, a CRUK-backed study published in October found that the equivalent of around 350 young adults aged 18 to 25 start smoking every day, with around 35,000 taking up the habit since the King’s Speech in July.