No smokers in Bristol by 2024?

BRISTOL will be the first city in England where all residents stop smoking – and this could happen as soon as 2024, a study has claimed.

Researchers say that the number of smokers in Bristol fell by 9.95 percentage points between 2011 and 2017. Its proportion of smokers stands at 11.14 per cent, but would fall to zero by 2024 if it continues to decrease at this rate.

The rest of England will finally kick the habit by 2050, according to research commissioned by cigarette firm Philip Morris Ltd (PML).

Wokingham and York would be the next local authority areas to stop smoking, in 202 .

Mark MacGregor of PML said: ‘What this research reveals is the huge variations in the decline in smoking in different parts of the country.’