Help needed so smokers can quit

A University of Bath researcher is urging the government to ensure the NHS can cope with the predicted high number of smokers trying to give up next year.

Tobacco researcher Dr Linda Bauld will outline her findings in a report to be delivered to a conference next week.

An analysis of the experience in Scotland has revealed double the number of smokers tried to quit three months ahead of the ban becoming law there.

Dr Bauld suggests support must be in place well before next summer.

Scottish services reported that the number of people accessing services dropped fairly quickly once the ban was in place.

"With the government suggesting that preparations in the rest of the UK should be in place by the time the ban is introduced, many of the health gains of supporting more smokers could be lost," said Dr Bauld.

"At the moment the message from government seems to be that preparations should be in place for the ban. In fact, it is the three to four months beforehand that are most important."

She also found the number of smokers who set a quit date with the support of NHS stop smoking services, increased significantly in the period January to March 2006, when compared with the same period the year before.