With just a month to go before the big day, the North East businessman and father of six said he is “saddened but not surprised” by research that shows how much children worry when a mum or dad smokes.
Although one in two smokers will die prematurely, many people assume it won’t happen until their 60s or 70s. However, half of the smoking related deaths in England every year happen in middle age and for every one death, there are 20 people suffering smoking related illnesses.
Research shows that 76% of children aged 8-13 recognise that smoking increases the likelihood of their parents developing cancer, with 96% wishing they would quit.
Duncan said: “No parent in their right mind wants to cause their children worry and stress, let alone grief.

“But just as many smokers blank the health dangers and pretend it will never happen to them, I think they also blank the effect it has on their children.

“I was a smoker and I quit 30 years ago, long before I became a dad, and it was the best thing I ever did.

“The NHS Stop Smoking Service wasn’t around then, but there is so much help and support out there now to help smokers to quit for good. It’s just a question of taking that first step.

“I’d urge parents to make their children and loved ones proud by trying to quit for No Smoking Day.”

The latest figures show that there are fewer people smoking in the North East than ever before. The number of people smoking in the North East has fallen for a third consecutive year starting from 29% in 2005 to 21% in 2008 - a total of around 170,000 fewer smokers over this three year period- the biggest percentage decline of any region in England.

Ailsa Rutter, director of Fresh – Smoke Free North East, England’s first regional tobacco office and winner of the Chief Medical Officer Gold Award 2009, said: “One in two smokers will die from their addiction. It kills 5,500 people in the North East every year and remains our biggest killer.

“There has been fantastic progress made in the last few years, and the North East has had the highest drop in smoking nationwide, but we still need to do more when smoking still costs the NHS and economy together re than £5bn a year.

“We must ensure we do more to try to help those people who still find it hard to quit, and turn off the tap of young people who start smoking, which are both priorities in the new National Tobacco Strategy.”

Smokers are up to four times more likely to quit with the help of their NHS Stop Smoking Service than just using their willpower alone. Nine out of ten people who have used a service say they would recommend it to others.

To find out more about the NHS Stop Smoking Services in the North East and how you can quit, call 0800 012 1612 or text “HEALTH” and your postcode to 88088.