Local tobacco control profiles for England: statistical commentary, March 2023 update
Published 7 March 2023
Applies to England
New in this update
This update provides mortality rates for deaths from lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in England in 2021. This new data has been added to the local tobacco control profiles for England (LTCP) tool on the Fingertips platform. The indicators listed below have been updated and are available at local authority level as well as for England, the regions, and deprivation deciles based on the Index of Multiple Deprivation:
- mortality rates from lung cancer
- mortality rates from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
Main findings
In 2021, there were 26,410 deaths from lung cancer in England, equating to a rate of 48.5 per 100,000 population. In the same period there were 21,701 deaths from COPD in England in 2021, equating to a rate of 39.8 per 100,000 population.
Trend data is not being presented alongside the 2021 updates as population estimates based on the 2021 Census are not yet available - see Background for more detail.
Background
The local tobacco control profiles for England provides a snapshot of the extent of tobacco use, tobacco related harm and measures being taken to reduce this harm at a local level. These profiles have been designed to help local government and health services to assess the effect of tobacco use on their local populations. They will inform commissioning and planning decisions to tackle tobacco use and improve the health of local communities.
The tool allows you to compare your local authority against other local authorities in the region and benchmark your local authority against the England or regional average.
Following Census 2021, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) is carrying out reconciliation and rebasing of the mid-year population estimates (MYE) it produces. This process happens every 10 years following the census. The official population estimates for mid-2012 to mid-2020 will be revised, to incorporate the data now available from Census 2021. As such, updated indicators in Fingertips using ONS mid-year population estimates are only presented for 2021. Once revised populations for mid-2012 to mid-2020 are published, the updated back series will be published.
Key definitions used in this release
Mortality from lung cancer: deaths from lung cancer, classified by underlying cause of death recorded as ICD-10 codes C33-C34.
Mortality from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): deaths from bronchitis, emphysema and other chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, classified by underlying cause of death recorded as ICD-10 codes J40-J44.
Age standardisation: all mortality rates in this update are standardised to adjust for differences in the age and sex structure of the population between areas and population groups.
Summary of updated indicators
Mortality rates from lung cancer
There were 26,410 deaths from lung cancer in England in 2021, equating to a rate of 48.5 per 100,000 population.
The age-standardised mortality rate was highest in the North East region (66.0 per 100,000 population) and lowest in the South East region (40.6 per 100,000 population). The mortality rate at lower tier local authority level varied from 94.7 in Kingston upon Hull to 21.5 (per 100,000 population) in Surrey Heath.
Figure 1: mortality rate from lung cancer (all ages): single year, lower tier local authorities, 2021
![](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/63ff32f9e90e0740dd5ac0d5/LTCP_Figure1_960x640.png)
Source: calculated by OHID Population Health Analysis (PHA) team from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) death registration data and ONS mid-year population estimates.
The mortality rate for lung cancer in the most deprived tenth of lower tier local authority areas was double the rate in the least deprived tenth (67.9 and 33.4 per 100,000 population respectively).
Mortality rates from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
In 2021, there were 21,701 deaths from COPD in England, equating to a rate of 39.8 per 100,000 population.
The mortality rate was highest in the North East region (54.8 per 100,000 population) and lowest in the South West region (32.2 per 100,000 population). The mortality rate at lower tier local authority level varied from 92.9 in Knowsley to 16.4 (per 100,000 population) in Mid Devon.
Figure 2: mortality rate from COPD (all ages): single year, lower tier local authorities, 2021
![](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/63ff32fae90e0740d2e5a7b0/LTCP_Figure2_960x640.png)
Source: calculated by OHID Population Health Analysis (PHA) team from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) annual death extract public health mortality file and ONS mid-year population estimates.
The mortality rate for COPD in the most deprived tenth of lower tier local authorities was more than double the rate in the least deprived tenth (59.7 and 24.5 per 100,000 population respectively).
Further information
View the LTCP Profile.
Responsible statistician, product lead: Mark Cook.
For queries relating to this publication, please contact: profilefeedback@dhsc.gov.uk.