THE eight directors of public health in Merseyside and Cheshire last night spoke of the unique opportunity smokers have to quit the habit on Sunday.

From July 1, people across England will be able to breathe air free from tobacco smoke in virtually all enclosed public places including offices, factories, pubs and bars, thanks to the landmark change in the law agreed by Parliament last summer.

Officials at the Roy Castle Lung Cancer foundation in Liverpool described the legislation as the most important for public health since the formation of the NHS in 1948.

Their words came as Roy Castle’s widow Fiona spoke of her pleasure at the imminent ban, after his death led to the setting-up of the foundation.

The Health Act 2006 also sees the age at which tobacco products can be bought raised from 16 to 18 on October 1.

“This is a unique opportunity for every smoker in Cheshire and Merseyside to quit for good,” said Marie Armitage, chair of ChaMPs public health network’s directors of public health group, which covers the two counties.

“From Sunday, smokers won’t just have the support of family and friends to stop smoking but the whole of England, too, as public places across the nation quit the habit.”

Research already shows the day England goes smoke-free is making smokers think again, with 53% anticipating they will be encouraged or helped to give up.

“Giving up is the best thing smokers can do for their own health and those around them,” said Ms Armitage, who is also joint director of public health for Wirral.

“Second-hand smoke – or passive smoking – puts non-smokers at risk of developing the same diseases as smokers. For example, a non-smoker has a 25% increased risk of developing heart disease and lung cancer if they share a home with a smoker.

“Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body, causing many diseases, and reduces people’s quality of life and life expectancy. In fact, half of all the teenagers who currently smoke will die eventually from diseases caused by tobacco if they continue to smoke.”

Ms Armitage added: “More than 12m people in the UK are ex-smokers and there is no better time to quit than on Sunday.”

The smoke ban is the biggest effort ever to reduce the number of adults who smoke from the current 10m, and address the health problems caused for countless more by second-hand smoke.

Each day this week, the Daily Post will look at how the city’s businesses, venues, health professionals and smokers are preparing for the ban.

One woman who knows the deadly effects of passive smoking more than most is Fiona Castle, widow of entertainer Roy Castle, who died of lung cancer in 1994.

She said: “We have come a long way since the day 15 years ago, when Roy was diagnosed with lung cancer through passive smoking.

“No one believed what the specialists had told him – that his kind of lung cancer was only found in smokers, therefore it had to have been caused through breathing in other people's smoke.

“Now it is an established fact, the thrilling outcome being that England will go Smoke Free in public places on July 1. Hooray!”

Roy Castle’s death led to the establishment of the only charity in the UK wholly dedicated to defeating the disease.

The Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation (RCLCF) was established with the help of thoracic surgeon Ray Donnelly and with the money raised from Roy’s Tour of Hope, undertaken in the last year of his life, the Roy Castle International Centre for Lung Cancer Research was built in Liverpool.

Christine Owens, head of tobacco control at RCLCF, said: “This is the most important piece of public health legislation since 1948, and it will save thousands of lives in the decades to come.

“It will also play an important part in reducing the prevalence of smoking in our society and thus result in reduced numbers of people smoking in the future.”

After initial resistance, the prospect of a total ban appears to have become more acceptable to the public.

Department of Health research from 2006 showed that of 1,200 individuals questioned, 77% of people agree with the legislation, with 53% showing strong support, but 15% said they were against it.

Liverpool initially brought its own campaign and private Bill to try to secure a smoke-free environment led by the publicly-backed Smoke-Free Liverpool campaign.

Director Andrea Crossfield said: “Both the public and employers really support this legislation. The legislation will protect the vast majority of workers wherever they work and will be welcomed by people across the city. 1000’s of lives over the decades to come will be saved as a result of the legislation.”

Chair of Liverpool Primary Care Trust, Gideon Ben-Tovim said: “The legislation is a fantastic opportunity for people who are thinking of stopping smoking to give it another go, combined with the PCT service of free support from Fagends on 0800 195 2131.”

THE NHS offers free local support across Merseyside and Cheshire. To find out more visit www.gosmokefree.co.uk/ and use the search function to find your local smoke-free service or call the free NHS helpline on 0800 169 0 169.