Catherine McKinnell MP is encouraging her Newcastle North constituents to ‘swap fags for swag’ by giving up cigarettes on No Smoking Day, which falls on 13th March.
Catherine has added her support to the annual campaign now run by the British Heart Foundation (BHF), which this year shows how much smokers could save if they quit for a day (£7), a week (£49), a month (£210) and a year (£2,555).
Last year’s No Smoking Day – which is now in its 30th year – helped more than 760,000 people to quit across the country. Nearly one in five UK adults smoke, and that figure rises to 21% in the North East. But figures also suggest that two thirds of smokers want to give up.
Catherine said:
“We all know that stopping smoking is one of the single biggest things you can do to improve your health. And shocking figures produced just last year suggest that smoking costs the North East £210million a year, in terms of lives lost, illness and the resulting cost to the NHS, local authorities and business.
“But giving up smoking can be very hard – and having access to the right support and advice is invaluable, whether through a local NHS pharmacy or from the British Heart Foundation.
“The ‘swap fags for swag’ campaign provides yet another incentive – just imagine being able to have a great family holiday, and feeling fitter and healthier whilst there, instead of wasting money on cigarettes.”
More information on the benefits of quitting as well as ‘top quit tips’, can be found at: www.wequit.co.uk or http://smokefree.nhs.uk/