Press Releases - Action on Smoking and Health

COVID-19 drives ‘astonishing’ quit rate among young smokers: Experts ask if trend will survive loosening lockdown

23 June 2020 COVID-19 drives ‘astonishing’ quit rate among young smokers: Experts ask if trend will survive loosening lockdown Smokers under 30 are more than twice as likely to have stopped smoking because of COVID-19 than those over 50, new research published today shows.[1] This bucks usual trends, which see smokers of all ages quit […]

This World No Tobacco Day, 280 children will start smoking in England – enough to fill over 17 school minibuses

29 May 2020 This World No Tobacco Day, 280 children will start smoking in England – enough to fill over 17 school minibuses Calculations by Cancer Research UK show that 280 children a day start smoking in England,[1] two thirds of whom will go on to become daily smokers.[2] Tobacco kills nearly 100,000 people a […]

Stop smoking services open to smokers thanks to rapid response of local councils

29 May 2020 Stop smoking services open to smokers thanks to rapid response of local councils A new survey [1] by public health charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) has found that within a month of lockdown, most councils had services in place to help smokers quit, and around a quarter reported an increase […]

Regional press releases: Ban on sale of menthol cigarettes

19 May 2020 See below for regional press releases with the latest estimates of how many children are starting to smoke each day in different areas of England. The national press release can be viewed here, and regional releases are below. Yorkshire and the Humber: As ban on sale of child-friendly menthol cigarettes takes effect ASH reveals […]

ASH warns that the ban on sale of menthol cigarettes is long overdue as 280 children a day take up smoking in England

19th May 2020 ASH warns that the ban on sale of menthol cigarettes is long overdue as 280 children a day take up smoking in England Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) welcomes the introduction of the ban on child-friendly menthol cigarettes on 20th May as an essential next step towards ending the tobacco epidemic.[1] […]

Media Advisory: Ban on menthol flavoured cigarettes comes into force on 20 May 2020

Issued 12th May 2020 ASH Media Advisory: Ban on menthol flavoured cigarettes comes into force on 20 May 2020 From Wednesday 20th May 2020, the sale of menthol flavoured cigarettes will be prohibited. Retailer organisations have complained about the lack of a sell-through period.[1] However, the transition period for ban on the sale of menthol […]

Health Secretary: “It is abundantly clear that smoking makes the impact of a coronavirus worse”

18 March 2020 Health Secretary: “It is abundantly clear that smoking makes the impact of a coronavirus worse” As the Government again highlights the risks to smokers from COVID-19, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) is joining health professionals in calling on smokers to #QuitforCovid. Speaking in the Commons yesterday, in response to a question […]

ASH welcomes tax rises on No Smoking Day but more needed to achieve Government ambition of a Smokefree 2030

11 March 2020 ASH welcomes tax rises on No Smoking Day but more needed to achieve Government ambition of a Smokefree 2030 Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) is pleased to see the tax escalator on cigarettes will continue at 2% above inflation (RPI) for the duration of this Parliament. For this year that will […]

What will the Chancellor do for smokers this No Smoking Day?

10 March 2020 What will the Chancellor do for smokers this No Smoking Day? Public health charity calls for the Chancellor to do his bit to help smokers quit in his first Budget which falls on No Smoking Day this year. Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) is joined by over 10 public health organisations […]

Big tobacco’s attempts to infiltrate UK health policy completely unacceptable

24 February 2020 Big tobacco’s attempts to infiltrate UK health policy completely unacceptable Following revelations today that the makers of Marlboro cigarettes (PMI) is seeking to infiltrate UK health policy, charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) is calling on Government to reaffirm its commitments to protect health policy from tobacco industry interests. The Guardian and […]

Chancellor urged to raise taxes for cigarillos to equal cigarettes in Budget

7 February 2020 Chancellor urged to raise taxes for cigarillos to equal cigarettes in Budget Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), the Tobacco Control Research Group at the University of Bath, and Cancer Research UK are calling on the Chancellor to raise taxes on cigarillos to discourage youth uptake. Yesterday, the organisations met with the […]

Every day in England 280 children start smoking while Government action on its Smokefree 2030 pledge is awaited

3 February 2020 The clock is ticking – every day in England 280 children start smoking and over 200 adults die from smoking while Government action on its Smokefree 2030 pledge is awaited Ex-smoker and cancer survivor Sue calls on Government to make the tobacco manufacturers pay to end the smoking epidemic 280 children a […]

New survey shows funding shortages for local tobacco control could put smokefree 2030 target at risk

14 January 2020 New survey shows funding shortages for local tobacco control could put smokefree 2030 target at risk A new survey [1] from Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) and Cancer Research UK finds that achieving the Government’s target of reaching a smokefree England by 2030 [2] is threatened by a lack of funding […]

Smokers with mental health conditions who successfully quit call on health professionals to do more to help others do the same

7 January 2020 Smokers with mental health conditions who successfully quit call on health professionals to do more to help others do the same This new year, five people who use mental health services shared their inspiring quit smoking journey, to show that stopping smoking while experiencing a mental health condition can be done. The […]

More must be done to help smokers with mental health conditions quit

6 November 2019 New report finds 1 in 5 mental health trusts still do not have a comprehensive smokefree policy in place, despite the Government deadline for implementation having passed last year Smoking prevalence amongst people with mental health conditions remains around 50% higher than among those without Staff behaviour often enables smoking, with staff […]