This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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100 days to go to No Smoking law
15/12/2005
With just 100 days until Scotland becomes the first part of the UK to introduce smoke-free enclosed public places, Ministers have announced tougher targets for reducing smoking rates.
The new target aims to reduce the number of adult smokers by almost 186,500 by 2010 - over 30,000 of these will be smokers in deprived areas where smoking prevalence is above average.
The new target for adults aged 16 and over is 22 per cent, rather than 26.5 per cent, by 2010. In the most deprived areas the target it to reduce the rate from 37.3% in 2004 to 33.2% in 2008.
The original 2010 target for all adults, aged 16-64, was 29 per cent but that has virtually been achieved five years early.
Health Minister Andy Kerr said:
"Today marks 100 days to go until Scotland becomes smoke-free. When it becomes law this measure will save hundreds, if not thousands of lives every year by radically reducing exposure to second-hand smoke.
"Our country's health and productivity will improve and the incidence of smoking-related diseases will fall.
"It will play a massive part in our wider drive to improve the health of Scots. We are confident that, in time, the improvement in public health delivered through this legislation will be regarded as one of the great achievements of devolution.
"In Scotland 70 per cent of Scots don't smoke and of those who do 70 per cent want to give up.
"We have almost met our current target of reducing smoking prevalence among adults to 29 per cent by 2010.
"It is important that we have targets to continue to drive down smoking levels and help people give up. These new targets with help us do just that.
"We announced an additional £4 million earlier this year to support people who want to kick the habit. Total funding for smoking cessation services will increase to £11 million by 2007-08.
"Stopping smoking is the single biggest step anyone can take to improving their health and it's not just the right decision for the smoker, but one that will benefit their friends and family.
"However, we know how difficult taking that first step can be. Having services out in the community - in places where people live and work will make that step easier."
An Expert Working Group agreed that the population target should be revised to make it appropriately challenging in order to significantly reduce smoking prevalence in Scotland by 2010.
They also recommended that the target should be rebased from 16-64 to 16+ which no upper age limit. This helps emphasise the fact that it is never to late to stop smoking to improve your health, and to make the figure directly comparable with the rest of the UK.
To support the reduction in the revised national targets the Executive will introduce local smoking reduction targets for NHS Boards. The local targets will be derived by applying the national reduction targets to current estimates of local smoking prevalence in each Health Board area.
The target for young people (aged 12-15) seeks a reduction from 14% to 12% between 1995 and 2005 and to 11% by 2010 and is currently under review.
Those living in deprived areas are 2.25 times more likely to smoke than those living in the most affluent areas. 37.3 per cent of adults in deprived areas smoke compared with 16.6% of adults in affluent areas.
About 6 per cent of 13 year olds and 19 per cent of 15 year olds are regular smokers (SALSUS 2004). In both age groups more girls than boys are regular smokers: 7 per cent of 13 year old girls compared with 5 per cent of 13 year old boys and 24 per cent of 15 year old girls compared with 14 per cent of 15 year old boys.