The London Tobacco Alliance has been created to enable partners to accelerate efforts to eliminate smoking in London. The culmination of years of work, it is the first of its kind in the capital. We are leading the way together to end smoking in London.
Find out more about the London Tobacco AllianceWHAT WE DO
The London Tobacco Alliance is a regional voice to make London smokefree by 2030 and focuses on the inequalities around smoking.
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Driven by Big Ambition
Regional Tobacco Alliances work. The Alliance works by convening partners and experts, to share best-practice, innovations and up-to-date insights, as well as identify opportunities for tackling illicit tobacco. Through the Alliance, we can understand what’s being delivered in London and where and work together to fill any gaps.
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City wide action to reduce smoking-related health inequalities
The London Tobacco Alliance combines city-wide efforts to prioritise the health and wellbeing of Londoners, address health inequalities attributable to tobacco, and ensure our children grow up without ever facing the temptation to start smoking.
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Working together in a coordinated way
Through collaboration, partners will share and create effective system-wide approaches, using Stop Smoking London as a key resource to help more Londoners stop smoking. We will do things once for London, including position statements, partner resources and best practice approaches.
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A range of partners with a shared vision for London
Our aim is to ensure becoming a smokefree city remains a top public health priority for London, supporting the shared ambition to be the world’s healthiest city. London Tobacco Alliance partners include Directors of Public Health, representatives from the Office of Health Improvement and Disparities, the NHS in London, London Councils, the GLA as well as voluntary sector organisations and academic institutions.
Testimonials
Through partnership, through innovation and with stated aspiration and ambition – we will save lives.
“My parents died when I was 23. They both died of cancer. Both died because of smoking. We had two years prior to their death of terrible experience, in terms of health and me seeing my parents die literally in front of me. I don’t want any family to go through that and so therefore for me, it’s not just a health-related issue or a community issue. For me it’s personal. If we can actually make this work then we reduce down the terrible impact that tobacco has on society.”
Bob Blackman
MP for Harrow and Chair APPG on Tobacco
“Regional Tobacco Alliances work. We have great examples of where they’ve been highly effective in other parts of the country and we’re now keen to bring the learning and expertise from that to bring to bear here in London. Through the alliance we’ll be able to understand what’s being delivered in the city at this time, where the gaps are and how working together we can help to fill those gaps and ensure we are more than the sum of our parts.”
Professor Kevin Fenton
Regional Director for London Office for Health Improvement and Disparities
“Smoking is probably the thing that causes the most avoidable harm to our population. We made real strides 20 years ago restricting smoking in public places. But since then, we haven’t done as many big things that have made a difference. There are still a hugely significant number of people still smoking and worryingly there are a lot of pregnant women who smoke. So now is a really good time, particularly as we recover from the pandemic, to focus on things we can do to prevent harm for large numbers of people.”
Chris Streather
Medical Director NHS England (London)
“The best regional programmes are in Westminster telling politicians what it is that we need to really transform the most vulnerable communities to smoking, to make sure that we can reach into every place. So, if London is really flying in five years’ time, it won’t just be leading for London, it’s going to be leading for the whole country.”
Hazel Cheeseman
Deputy Chief Executive for Smoking on Action and Health (ASH)
“The London Tobacco Alliance will act as a regional voice to make London smokefree by 2030 and will focus on the inequalities around smoking. We already have a number of key partners including OHID, ASH, NHS England, the GLA as well as Directors for Public Health and London Trading Standards.”
Tracy Parr
Programme Director, London Tobacco Alliance and Stop Smoking London
aim – London Tobacco Alliance
Through partnership working, and by focusing on the inequalities that surround smoking – our aim is to make London Smokefree by 2030. Smoking is the biggest avoidable cause of death, disability, and social inequality in health in the UK.
News & Events
First for smokers as London’s position on vaping for adult smokers is published
What’s Happening?
News and insights from the world of tobacco control
PREVALENCE
12.9
Smoking prevalence rates in London stand at 12.9% (2019) – significantly lower than the England average of 13.9%.
897
There are around 897,243 smokers in London, but there are extreme inequalities across individual boroughs and communities.
20
of people living in London’s poorest boroughs smoke.
1 in 5
Adults living in Islington are smokers.
1 in 10
of routine and manual workers in Havering are regular smokers.
4.6
of women in London are smoking at the time of delivering their baby.
7.5
Long term smokers are 7.5% less likely to be employed.
21
of routine and manual workers smokein London.
2.5
Non-heterosexuals are 2.5 times more likely to smoke than heterosexuals.
77
People experiencing homelessness are 77% more likely to face greater health inequalities.
39
of smokers in London have a long-term mental health condition
Immigration from countries with higher smoking rates, particularly Eastern Europe including Romania and Poland, has an impact on tobacco use in the UK and London.
QUITTING METHODS – WHAT WORKS?
1
Most effective
Local stop smoking services offer the best chance of success.
A person is 3 times as likely to quit with behavioural support than using willpower alone.
Local stop smoking services offer the best chance of success.
A person is 3 times as likely to quit with behavioural support than using willpower alone.
2
Using medication prescribed by a GP, pharmacist, or other health professional…
…doubles a person’s chances of quitting.
Using medication prescribed by a GP, pharmacist, or other health professional…
…doubles a person’s chances of quitting.
3
Using over-the-counter nicotine replacement such as patches, gum or e-cigarettes…
…increases chances of success by 1.5 times.
Using over-the-counter nicotine replacement such as patches, gum or e-cigarettes…
…increases chances of success by 1.5 times.
4
Least effective
Using willpower alone is the least effective method.
Using willpower alone is the least effective method.
HARMS
£201
Preventing early deaths from smoking could save London £201.8M a year.
5,939
People in London die each year because of smoking.
7.2
The average number of years of life lost among male smokers in London.
£1.1
Stopping smoking could see more Londoners in work. Smoking related unemployment costs London £1.1Bn.
16.7
of London households with a smoker fall below poverty line. Roughly the equivalent of Islington and Hammersmith and Fulham’s populations combined.
£1,945
is the average amount of money a smoker spends on tobacco annually.
£3,890
The average amount of money a household of two spends on tobacco per year.
8.1
cigarettes are consumed in London each day.
434
Tonnes of tobacco waste would be saved annually if London went smokefree.
182
Tonnes of tobacco litter is discarded onto the streets of London every year.
£2.9
Smoking costs London £2.98Bn a year in lost productivity, health and social care, and fire, including loss of life and damage to property.
Stopping smoking can reduce depression and anxiety. It can benefit symptoms as much as taking antidepressants.
HOW STOPPING SMOKING BENEFITS THE BODY:
Decreases blood pressure and heart rate.
Halves the risk of having a heart attack or stroke.
Decreases the risk of death through lung cancer and chronic lung disease.
Reduces the risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, voice box, oesophagus and stomach.
Reduces the risk of impotence in men and fertility issues in women.
Reduces the risk of brittle bones and osteoporosis.
Improves the skin’s appearance and reduces premature ageing.