Redbridge Council plans to create a cigarette smoke-free zone in Ilford Town Centre.

More than one in ten of all Redbridge adults smoke and are estimated to cost the council £42 million a year.

However, the council have no plans to enforce the no-smoking zone, instead relying on the “goodwill of residents and visitors” to make the measure work.

Councillor Mark Santos, Cabinet Member for Health, Social Care, Mental Health & the Ageing, said: “Reducing the number of people smoking in Redbridge is still very high on the public health agenda.

“There are currently plans in place to implement a voluntary smoke-free zone in Ilford Town Centre – a simple measure that will complement the overall regeneration programme for the town centre.

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“The approach we are proposing is one that will rely on the goodwill of residents and visitors to be civic-minded, by not smoking in designated areas.”

It is not currently known which areas will be designated or when they will come into action.

The Annual Public Health Report revealed there are 300,000 smokers in Redbridge, who cost the council £29 million a year in lost productivity alone.

The council also intends to use its licensing powers to ensure that businesses such as shisha cafes “do not contribute to an environment that promotes addiction”.

The borough has high rates of shisha smoking and chewing tobacco use, particularly among Asian residents.