British authorities will go all out to encourage about 1m smokers to swop cigarettes for vapes, with pregnant women offered financial incentives to make the change in what will be a world first, the government said this week.
Under the scheme, almost one in five smokers will be given an e-cigarette starter kit, along with support, to help quit smoking, the UK Department of Health (DoH) said.
Reuters reports that pregnant women will also be offered vouchers to help them kick the habit as part of the government’s target of reducing the number of smokers to 5% or less of the population, from the current 13%.
“Up to two out of three lifelong smokers will die from smoking,” Health Minister Neil O’Brien said. “The ‘swop to stop’ scheme will be the first of its kind in the world.”
Tobacco is still the highest preventable cause of death and illness in the UK, with the government having spent £68m in 2021-22 on measures to get people to stop smoking, leading to 100 000 smokers quitting, and easing the strain on the National Health Service.
Vaping, however, has its critics and health officials have warned its popularity among children is exposing them to chemicals whose long-term effects are unclear.
Health service figures show 9% of 11 to 15-year-olds in Britain had used e-cigarettes in 2021, up from 6% three years before. The government said it would set up an enforcement squad backed by £3m in funding to prevent the illegal sale of vapes to under-18s.
Reuters article – Britain to encourage smokers to swap cigarettes for vapes (Open access)
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