An Oxfordshire area saw the second highest national decrease in smokers between 2018 and 2021, according to a recent study.

The West Oxfordshire district observed a 65.42% decrease in smokers between 2018 and 2021, which worked out to a total loss of 7488 smokers.

West Oxfordshire was the only Oxfordshire area that made the top 50 decrease list.

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South Hams in Devon was found to have the largest decrease in smokers, down by 70.52% since 2022 which amounted to a decrease of approximately 10,366 people.

A spokesperson for Go Smoke Free commented: “Although there has been a 6.19% decline in smokers between 2018 and 2021 across the UK, there are still several areas that are reporting an uptake in people identifying as smokers.

“With 1st October marking the start of Stoptober throughout the UK, these regional differences in smoking prevalence underscore the importance of continued research and awareness campaigns to address these differences effectively.”

The largest overall increase in the number of smokers was seen in Wychavon, Worcestershire, with figures showing that between 2018 and 2021 there was an increase of approximately 12,238 smokers.

Approximately 6.4 million people reported that they smoked in 2022 though the number of smokers has been declining for decades and figures show that the UK has reached the lowest proportion of current smokers since records began in 2011.

In 2020 Oxfordshire County Council announced plans for Oxfordshire to become England’s first ‘smoke-free’ county by 2025.