Smokers urged to chuck away the fags in Stoptober

Thousands of people in South Tyneside are being urged to stub out their smoking habit this month.

- by Tom Patterson

Stoptober is back and South Tyneside Council is joining anti-smoking group Fresh to encourage smokers to quit during October.

This year smokers can give their willpower a boost with more support to quit than ever before.

Over five million people in England and 11% in the North East still smoke - around 233,000 people.

Smoking kills two out of three lifelong smokers, killing 75,000 people in England a year - the biggest cause of preventable illness and death.

The health benefits of stopping smoking start almost immediately - with evidence showing that people who quit for 28 days are five times more likely to stop smoking for good.