Smoking cessation (FOI)

​Request 678223687

I'd like some information on the amount of tax-payers money Jersey's government spends on health initiatives to get people to stop smoking - specifically for the years 2021 to 2024 (inclusive). 

For reference, you provide this information in 2021 for the six previous years - that FOI is here:

https://www.gov.je/government/freedomofinformation/pages/foi.aspx?ReportID=4642​

Just to be clear, as before, I'd like included but not exclusively: advertising, hypnosis, acupuncture, doctors' time, nurses' time, patches, gum, campaigns and so on.

Response

Total costs per annum from 2020 to 2024 have been provided in a Freedom of Information response published to www.gov.je in January 2025:

https://www.gov.je/government/freedomofinformation/pages/foi.aspx?ReportID=8133

As this information is available elsewhere, Article 23 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied.

A breakdown of the annual costs for 2021 through to 2024 is detailed in the attached table:

Annual Costs 2021 to 2024.pdf​

Staff costs for 2024 include two extra nursing staff, with funding made available through reducing preventable disease work which took place in previous years, along with administrative support. Increased operational costs primarily relate to investment in equipment and Information Technology / telecoms.

Evidence shows that for every £1 spent on Stop Smoking services there is a return of £10 for future healthcare costs. As outlined in the Annual Director of Public Health Report 2024 (Director of Public Health Annual Report 2024.pdf), addressing lifestyle factors which pose a risk to health, such as smoking, can significantly reduce the burden of disease.

The report makes reference to the impact of smoking upon health, including:

‘Smoking harms health: 50% of smokers will die of smoking-related disease.’

‘By far the greatest impact from substance use is the impact of tobacco on the health of Islanders. The latest data shows that around 4% of hospital admissions (1,120 episodes) and one in five (19%) of all deaths in those aged 35 and over is related to smoking each year.’

All clients of the Stop Smoking service receive specialist support from nursing staff trained to deliver this care. The nursing team have a range of skills to support clients to quit, including increasing access to prescription medication, and knowledge, skills and experience in supporting behavioural change.

The Director of Public Health’s 2024 report records that ‘Over the last decade, Jersey has seen a reduction in the overall proportion of adults who smoke (daily or occasionally); down from 22% in 2013 to around one in seven (15%) in 2023.’

As noted in the 2021 Freedom of Information response referenced in the query, hypnosis and acupuncture treatments are not funded. The service provides medications and interventions which increase the likelihood of a person quitting smoking. The evidence base for this is strong, and the previous stance on interventions such as acupuncture and hypnotherapy continue as before, and they are not offered.

Article applied

Article 23 - Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is reasonably available to the applicant, otherwise than under this Law, whether or not free of charge.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant where the applicant may obtain the information.​