A tobacco tax hike of five per cent above inflation would result in a substantial drop in the number of people who smoke cigarettes, an anti-smoking charity has suggested.
Smoking is known to be the catalyst in a variety of different illnesses and health problems that cost the economy millions each year.
An Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) report said that increasing tobacco taxation would lead to a reduction in the number of smokers by 190,000.
The report also revealed that a rise in tobacco tax would save the NHS more than £20 million a year by reducing the cost of treating smoking-related diseases.
Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Ash said that while raising the price is an incentive for smokers to quit, not all smokers can.
"If smoking were invented today, it would be banned. It's incredibly dangerous but because it is so common you couldn't ban it overnight," she noted.
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