Data from the Office for National Statistics found around 13.3% of people aged 18 or over smoked cigarettes in 2021, down from 14.0% in 2020.
The government’s tobacco control plan aims to reduce smoking prevalence among adults in England to 12% or less by the end of 2022.
The number of people smoking in the UK dropped to its lowest level last year, but more people were using e-cigarettes, new figures have revealed.
But 7.7% of those aged 16 and over said they used e-cigarettes – compared to 6.4% in 2020.
The first ONS records on smoking were in 2011 and found 20.2% had smoked.
The ONS said the latest data was a “statistically significant” drop.
The decrease in smokers may be partly due to more people turning to electronic cigarettes, James Tucker, data and analysis for social care and health division at the ONS said.
He said: “This is the lowest proportion of current smokers since 2011 when we began recording smoking prevalence from the annual population survey (APS).”
The ONS said that vaping devices such as e-cigarettes had played a “major role” in reducing smoking numbers across the UK.
It added that e-cigarette use was highest among current cigarette smokers at 25.3% and ex-cigarette smokers at 15.0%, with only 1.5% of people who have never smoked saying that they currently vape.
But it added that vaping might not be the only factor for a drop in smoking numbers.
It could also be due to increased public awareness campaigns and smoke-free places such as pubs and offices.
The NHS website says that, while not risk-free, vaping poses less of a risk than tobacco cigarettes. However, the long-term effects of vaping are not yet known.
It is against the law to sell e-cigarettes to those aged under 18.
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