Smoking is bad for our economy as well as our health. Government needs to be bold if it is to level up health
Responding to Javed Khan’s smoking review, ILC argues Government must be more ambitious if they are to level up health.
David Sinclair, Director of the ILC said:
“It’s no secret that smoking is bad for our health but what is lesser known is it is also bad for our economy. If current or ex-smokers had never smoked, overall earnings could be 1.9% higher, boosting the UK economy by £19.1 billion every year. ILC research shows that people who stay healthier, work longer. volunteer more, spend more and provide more care.
“The Government has set an ambitious target of increasing healthy life expectancy. We won’t achieve that without addressing the health conditions associated with smoking.
“Health inequalities are often driven by smoking and as such reducing related diseases will play an important part in tackling health inequalities, Raising the smoking age further would be a good start.
“But to address health inequalities in the UK, the Government must take a far bolder and broader approach to preventative health across all parts of the UK.
“With differences of up to 15 years in health expectancy between the healthiest and least healthy areas, the scope to level up is definitely there – the policies just need to be more ambitious in order to succeed.”
Ends
About ILC: The ILC is the UK’s specialist think tank on the impact of longevity on society, and what happens next. We believe society has to adapt now so we can all enjoy the benefits of longevity. We want a society that works for everyone, regardless of their age. We know the numbers. We know the challenges. What happens next will define us for generations.
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Notes
- ILC research Levelling up: the great health challenge by Professor Les Mayhew, Professor of Statistics at Bayes Business School and Head of Global Research at the International Longevity Centre; Professor Andrew Cairns, Professor in Actuarial Mathematics at Heriot Watt University; and Dr Mei Sum Chan, Health Analytics Consultant at Lane Clark & Peacock.
- The research highlights that smoking remains the major cause of death and ill health – accounting for about 75,000 deaths a year in England and half a million hospital admissions (92,000 deaths UK-wide). It affects all ages: For example, the health of a 34 year-old smoker is the same as that of someone aged 40 who has never smoked.
- Smoking is also extremely damaging for the economy; if current or ex-smokers had never smoked, overall earnings could be 1.9% higher, boosting the UK economy by £19.1 billion every year.
- The geography of smoking-related deaths strongly correlates with health expectancy and with deprivation. The local authorities with the highest prevalence of smoking, as ranked by the Office for National Statistics on their smoking index, are Blackpool, Kingston upon Hull, Barking and Dagenham. Those ranked lowest are Richmond upon Thames and Windsor.
- Earlier research conducted by Professor Mayhew on ‘The cost of inequality: Putting a price on health’ published in July 2021 by the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation (CFSI), in partnership with ILC and The Business School at City University, challenges conventional wisdom by proposing a novel way of thinking about inequalities that links health to wealth and to the economy.