AQW 6689/17-22


Ms Paula Bradshaw
Alliance Party
South Belfast


Tabled Date: 10/09/2020
Answered On Date: 23/09/2020
Priority Written: No


Question:
To ask the Minister of Health how much his Department has spent on smoking cessation services in each financial year from 2011/12 to 2019/20.


Answer:
In order to meet the targets outlined in the Department’s Ten Year Tobacco Control Strategy, the Public Health Agency (PHA) invests funding received from my Department in a number of Stop Smoking Services across Northern Ireland. The tobacco control budget is in the region of £3.9M per annum.
There are over 650 PHA commissioned Stop Smoking Services across Northern Ireland and these are provided through Health & Social Care Trusts, Community Pharmacies, GP Practices and Community and Voluntary sector partners. These services aim to help smokers to quit and are provided free of charge to the public.
A summary of investments in Stop Smoking Services in each financial year from 2011/12 to 2019/20 is set out below;
Financial Year
Total Tobacco Control Spend
Cessation Services*(~55%)
Nicotine Replacement Therapy NRT (~37%)
2011-2012
£ 3,912,532.00
£ 2,151,892.60
£ 1,447,636.84
2012-2013
£ 4,572,957.00
£ 2,515,126.35
£ 1,691,994.09
2013-2014
£ 4,229,622.00
£ 2,326,292.10
£ 1,564,960.14
2014-2015
£ 2,976,343.00
£ 1,636,988.65
£ 1,101,246.91
2015-2016
£ 3,910,256.00
£ 2,150,640.80
£ 1,446,794.72
2016-2017
£ 4,039,661.00
£ 2,221,813.55
£ 1,494,674.57
2017-2018
£ 3,947,420.00
£ 2,171,081.00
£ 1,460,545.40
2018-2019
£ 3,955,191.00
£ 2,175,355.05
£ 1,463,420.67
2019-2020
£ 3,912,532.00
£ 2,151,892.60
£ 1,447,636.84
NB: Smoking Cessation Services and the associated NRT expenditure is demand led and is therefore variable from year to year based on the number of people accessing services.
Approximately 8-10% of the annual budget covers other expenditure including enforcement, data system maintenance, website costs etc.