The Scottish Government has announced that the number of people who successfully gave up smoking for at least a month has exceeded expected targets by more than 50%. Figures released on 30 September by ISD Scotland show the target to deliver 80,000 one month quits was exceeded by 56% with 124,734 people giving up the habit between 1 April 2011 and 31 March 2014.
A target of 48,000 quits in Scotland’s most deprived areas was also exceeded, with 70,162 saying they had given up.
Michael Matheson, Minister for Public Health, said: “Giving up smoking is the single best thing anyone can do to improve their health. That is why we welcome these latest figures, showing NHS smoking cessation services are continuing to deliver positive results.
“While it’s encouraging to see target numbers exceeded, we are not complacent. Smoking rates are higher in deprived areas, contributing to health inequalities. We will continue to work to reach out to people in these communities and to help them to quit. We have also introduced a new target for NHS Scotland to support successful quits in our most deprived communities.”
This attempt to increase the number of people giving up smoking is part of the Scottish Governments plan to lower preventable ill-health, premature death and create a tobacco-free generation by 2034.