PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
(7 September 2026)

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data sources her Department is using to assess whether smoking prevalence among people aged 14 to 30 years is on track to reach the modelled level of near-zero by 2050; and whether she has plans to publish smoking prevalence data for that age group to enable external assessment of progress.

Asked by:
Sir Julian Smith (Conservative)

The Department used a range of data sources to estimate and model smoking prevalence among those aged 14 to 30 years old. The main data sources used were Smoking, Drinking and Drug Use among Young People in England by NHS England Digital, Adult smoking habits in the UK by the Office for National Statistics, and the University College London Smoking Toolkit Study, all three of which are available at the following links:

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/smoking-drinking-and-drug-use-among-young-people-in-england

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/healthandlifeexpectancies/bulletins/adultsmokinghabitsingreatbritain/2024

https://www.smokinginengland.info/graphs/top-line-findings

These data sources are publicly available, and while no single source provides smoking prevalence for those aged 14 to 30, the Department will monitor these data sources and any others we think are appropriate to evaluate the impact of the smoke-free generation policy.

Answered by:
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