Consumption down

Around 1.4 billion fewer cigarettes are being smoked in England every year, according to new research funded by Cancer Research U.K.

Between 2011 and 2018, average monthly cigarette consumption fell by nearly a quarter, equating to around 118 million fewer cigarettes being smoked every month.

Over the whole period, the average number of cigarettes smoked monthly declined by 24.4 percent based on survey data and 24.1 percent based on sales data from 3.40 billion and 3.41 billion a month to 2.57 billion and 2.58 billion, respectively.

“It’s brilliant that over a billion fewer cigarettes are being sold and smoked in England every year,” said lead author Sarah Jackson from UCL’s Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group.

Cancer Research U.K. said the decline suggested that stricter tobacco laws and taking action to encourage people to quit smoking are working.