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** 15 July 2020
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** UK
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** Coronavirus: Smokers quit in highest numbers in a decade (#1)
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** Radio interview: More than a million people have given up smoking (#2)
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** UK experts fear up to 120,000 Covid-19 deaths this winter (#3)
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** Welsh Government proposals could see smoking banned outside pubs, cafes and restaurants (#4)
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** UK
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More than one million people have given up smoking since the Covid-19 pandemic hit, a YouGov survey for charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) suggests. Of those who had quit in the previous four months, 41% said it was in direct response to coronavirus. Separately, University College London (UCL) found more people quit smoking in the year to June 2020 than in any year since its survey began in 2007.

Government advice says smokers may be at risk of more severe Covid symptoms.

Between 15 April and 20 June, a representative sample of 10,000 people, enrolled by pollster YouGov on behalf of ASH, were asked about their smoking habits. The results were used to estimate the total number of people giving up smoking in the UK.

Just under half of people who had quit in the past four months said the pandemic had played a role in their decision. That may have been down to a range of factors including health concerns, access to tobacco while isolating or no longer smoking socially.

Deborah Arnott, Chief Executive, Action on Smoking and Health said: “Over a million smokers may have succeeded in stopping smoking since COVID-19 hit Britain, but millions more have carried on smoking. This campaign is designed to encourage those who’ve not yet succeeded, to wake up and decide today is the day to stop smoking.”

ASH is launching the Today is the Day stop-smoking campaign funded by the Department of Health and Social Care, targeting people in areas of the country with the highest rates of smoking.

Source: BBC News, 15 July 2020

See also:
The Independent: More than 1 million UK smokers have given up since pandemic began, study claims ([link removed])

The Telegraph: One million UK smokers may have quit in coronavirus lockdown ([link removed])

Mail Online: More than a million Britons have quit smoking during the coronavirus crisis, analysis suggests ([link removed])
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** This morning Hazel Cheeseman, Director of Policy at Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), appeared on BBC Radio London to discuss findings from a YouGov survey showing that over a million people have quit smoking since the Covid-19 pandemic hit.

Listen from 1:09:00 – 1:16:44

Source: BBC Radio London, 15 July 2020
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Listen Here ([link removed])


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** Britain must start “intense preparations” for a second wave of coronavirus that has the potential to kill as many as 120,000 hospital patients in a worst case scenario, experts have warned. Senior doctors and scientists convened by the Academy of Medical Sciences said on Tuesday, 14 July, that without urgent action, a resurgence of cases this winter could overwhelm the NHS when services are already stretched because of flu and other seasonal pressures.

The experts were commissioned by Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, to model a “reasonable worst case scenario” for Covid-19 this winter. Their report, which has been shared with ministers and local health authorities, calls for immediate efforts to prepare for a second wave.

The modelling excludes deaths in care homes and the community, assumes no government intervention to prevent transmission, and does not factor in the use of dexamethasone, a drug recently shown to save lives in intensive care units.

The report calls for a major public information campaign in the autumn to encourage people to prevent the virus from spreading. Hospitals and care homes will need better supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE), widespread testing capacity and Covid-19-free zones.

Stephen Holgate, chair of the expert group and professor of immunopharmacology at the University of Southampton said: “The modelling suggests that deaths could be higher with a new wave of Covid-19 this winter, but the risk of this happening could be reduced if we take action immediately. With relatively low numbers of Covid-19 cases at the moment, this is a critical window of opportunity to help us prepare for the worst that winter can throw at us.”

Dame Anne Johnson, a co-author of the report and professor of infectious disease epidemiology at University College London, said there was a need for a powerful public information campaign that targeted specific communities as well as the nation as a whole.

Source: The Guardian, 14 July 2020
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** Smoking could be banned outsides pubs, cafes and restaurants, if new Welsh Government proposals get the go-ahead. Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) Wales has welcomed the plans which would see new smokefree laws extended to the outdoor seating areas of pubs, cafes, bars and restaurants to protect non-smokers from the effects of secondhand smoke. The move follows concerns that smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke may put people at higher risk of suffering more severe symptoms if they catch Covid-19.

New legislation is expected to come into force shortly and will ban smoking in hospital grounds and schools under the Public Health (Wales) Act in a bid to protect the public from secondhand smoke and de-normalise smoking in the eyes of young people. The ban on smoking in the outdoor seating areas of pubs, cafes and restaurants could come into force during the next Senedd term if the proposals are given the go-ahead.

Research by ASH Wales has shown there is strong public support for the introduction of tougher measures to curb smoking in Wales. Its research shows that 63% of adults support a smoking ban in the outdoor seating areas of restaurants and cafes and over half (59%) support a ban on smoking in town centres.

Suzanne Cass, CEO of ASH Wales, said: “In Wales, where 83% of the population don’t smoke, it is crucially important that we introduce measures both to protect non-smokers, but also to de-normalise this devastating addiction and encourage smokers to seek help to quit.

“As lockdown restrictions are lifted and customers, including families with young children, return to the outdoor areas of pubs, cafes and restaurants, it is more important than ever to ensure that staff and customers are protected from breathing in second hand smoke which we know carries significant health risks.”

Source: Wales 24/7, 15 July 2020
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For more information call 020 7404 0242, email [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) or visit www.ash.org.uk

ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.

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