A core set of key performance indicators are included in each STS survey (see Table 2 for assessments routinely included each month). Specific questions are added to the survey to address particular issues (e.g. to assess the impact of Smokefree legislation and public support for a levy on tobacco products to fund tobacco control initiatives). The postal follow-up questionnaire is much shorter. Questions include current smoking status, number of cigarettes smoked, attempts to stop and characteristics of those attempts, attitudes towards smoking, cutting down smoking behaviour and tobacco dependence.
Smoking status and cigarettes smoked per day are analysed in the current paper. Smoking status was assessed with the following question: 'Which of the following best applies to you? I smoke cigarettes (including hand-rolled) every day, I smoke cigarettes (including hand-rolled), but not every day; I do not smoke cigarettes at all, but I do smoke tobacco of some kind (e.g. pipe or cigar); I have stopped smoking completely in the last year; I stopped smoking completely more than a year ago; I have never been a smoker (i.e. smoked for a year or more); Don't Know'. Those who responded that they smoked cigarettes every day or that they smoked cigarettes but not every day are coded as current cigarette smokers. Cigarette consumption is measured using the following question 'How many cigarettes per day do/did you usually smoke'. Those who do not smoke every day can give a figure per week or per month.
Socio-demographic information includes: gender, age, and social grade based on information about the occupation of the chief income earner, as used in the British National Readership Survey [19 ]. The social grade categories are: AB = higher and intermediate professional/managerial, C1 = supervisory, clerical, junior managerial/administrative/professional, C2 = skilled manual workers, D = semi-skilled and unskilled manual workers, and E = on state benefit, unemployed, lowest grade workers. These are dichotomised into ABC1 and C2DE in the current analyses.
Smoking status and cigarettes smoked per day are analysed in the current paper. Smoking status was assessed with the following question: 'Which of the following best applies to you? I smoke cigarettes (including hand-rolled) every day, I smoke cigarettes (including hand-rolled), but not every day; I do not smoke cigarettes at all, but I do smoke tobacco of some kind (e.g. pipe or cigar); I have stopped smoking completely in the last year; I stopped smoking completely more than a year ago; I have never been a smoker (i.e. smoked for a year or more); Don't Know'. Those who responded that they smoked cigarettes every day or that they smoked cigarettes but not every day are coded as current cigarette smokers. Cigarette consumption is measured using the following question 'How many cigarettes per day do/did you usually smoke'. Those who do not smoke every day can give a figure per week or per month.
Socio-demographic information includes: gender, age, and social grade based on information about the occupation of the chief income earner, as used in the British National Readership Survey [19 ]. The social grade categories are: AB = higher and intermediate professional/managerial, C1 = supervisory, clerical, junior managerial/administrative/professional, C2 = skilled manual workers, D = semi-skilled and unskilled manual workers, and E = on state benefit, unemployed, lowest grade workers. These are dichotomised into ABC1 and C2DE in the current analyses.
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