Ireland sees biggest drop in smoking levels in EU

Ireland has the fourth-lowest smoking rate in the EU, according to the findings of a major EU survey on tobacco consumption across Europe.

Just 21% of Irish people surveyed said they currently smoke, with only Sweden, Finland, and Malta having lower smoking rates.

Ireland also recorded the biggest decrease in smoking levels of all 28 EU countries since 2012, with the rate down 8% since a similar survey was conducted three years ago.

The Eurobarometer survey, which was conducted to mark World No Tobacco Day yesterday, polled more than 27,800 people across the EU, including 1,000 in Ireland.

Despite the ban on smoking in the workplace, 13% of Irish people reported being exposed to at least occasional tobacco smoke at their job.

The survey also reveals that 3% of Irish people are currently using e-cigarettes, with 12% having tried the product at some stage. However, more than one in four Irish people said they did not know if e-cigarettes were harmful — one of the highest rates of any nationality.

The results show the highest smoking rate in Ireland is among the 25-39 years age group, at 26%, while the lowest is among those aged 55 years or over, at 16%.

The average age at which Irish people start smoking is 17.2 years — down from 18 years in the previous survey. A fifth of all Irish smokers said they had started smoking before the age of 15.

More than two thirds of Irish smokers (68%) said they had tried to quit smoking at some stage, compared to the EU average of 59%.

Overall, the survey shows that tobacco use across the EU is down 2% since 2012, although 26% of Europeans are still smokers. The biggest reduction was among the 15-24 years group, where smoking rates fell by 4% to 25%.

The results highlight notable variations in tobacco consumption between EU member states, with Sweden (11%) and Finland (19%) having the lowest rates, while Greece (38%) and Bulgaria (35%) have the highest. They also show that 19% of all smokers have tried to quit in the past 12 months.

The use of e-cigarettes has also risen, with 12% of Europeans now having tried them, compared to 7% in 2012. However, only 2% are currently using them.

Just 14% of e-cigarette users were able to stop smoking — a finding the European Commission claims shows that they are not particularly effective as a quitting tool — while 21% said they had helped to lower their consumption of tobacco.

The average age at which Europeans start smoking is unchanged at 17.6 years.

“The figures show that the fight against tobacco is not won, particularly among the young,” said Vytenis Andriukaitis, the European commissioner for health. “It is unacceptable that Europeans continue to be attracted to smoking when they are teenagers.”

Smoking is the biggest avoidable cause of death in Europe and is responsible for around 700,000 deaths in the EU per annum. Around 50% of smokers die prematurely, resulting in the loss on average of 14 years of life.

Meanwhile, new figures show that women living in poorer areas are four times more likely to smoke that women in better-off areas.

The Irish Cancer Society has said new measures must be taken as a matter of urgency to bring down the seriously high rate of smoking in poorer communities.

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