London: The British government announced on Tuesday that up to one million smokers will be persuaded to switch from cigarettes to "vapes," with pregnant women being offered financial incentives to do so.

According to the Department of Health (DoH), almost one in five smokers will receive a starter kit for an electronic cigarette called a vape along with support to help them stop smoking.

As part of the government's goal to lower the percentage of smokers in the population from the current 13 percent to 5 percent or less, pregnant women will also be given vouchers to help them quit.

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"Smoking-related deaths will occur in up to two out of every three lifelong smokers. The government announced that Health Minister Neil O'Brien will make the comment in a speech later on Tuesday. "Cigarettes are the only product on the market that will kill you if used correctly," he will say.

"We will provide one million smokers with new quitting aid. The first programme of its kind in the world, a new national "swap to stop" initiative will be funded by us.

Smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death and illness in the nation, according to the DoH, even though the average smoking rate around the world is higher than in Britain.

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100,000 smokers stopped smoking as a result of the government's investment of 68 million pounds ($84.52 million) in 2021–2022 in local authority efforts to reduce smoking, relieving pressure on Britain's overburdened National Health Service.

However, vaping has its detractors, and health authorities have cautioned that the popularity of the practise among kids exposes them to chemicals whose long-term effects are unknown.

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According to health service data, 9 percent of British children aged 11 to 15 had used e-cigarettes in 2021, up from 6 percent three years earlier. In order to stop the illegal sale of vapes to people under the age of 18, the government announced that it would establish an enforcement squad with funding of 3 million pounds.