HC Deb 16 February 1998 vol 306 c493W
Mr. Peter Bottomley

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the weekly numbers of new smokers. [28817]

Ms Jowell

No reliable estimate has been made centrally. However, information about the smoking habits of young people aged 16–24 in 1996, leads to an estimate of about 3,000–5,000 new smokers each week on average.