ANEW campaign has been launched in a bid to cut the number of people in Glasgow who smoke.

The city council and health chiefs have joined forces in a two year programme which will focus on some of the most vulnerable people in the city.

They will include young people in care, the prison population and people living in deprived communities.

Emma Gillan, the city council's health inequalities spokeswoman, said: "In recent years, there has been significant progress in reducing the harm caused by tobacco in Glasgow.

"Local and national initiatives, supported by community projects and a continuing programme of health education in our schools have all contributed to a reduction in the number of adults and young children who smoke.

"Despite these successes, tobacco use in Glasgow remains higher than the Scottish average and remains the main preventable cause of death.

"In addition, as the gap in the prevalence of smoking increases between our most and least deprived communities, it is increasingly a contributor to the levels of health inequality we see in the city.

"I want to see a real reduction in health inequalities in Glasgow and I believe decisive action on tobacco control is necessary for this to happen.

"Too many Glaswegians continue to be harmed by smoking. This strategy outlines the city's collective resolve to create a society where every Glaswegian has the right to the highest attainable standard of life and a city free from the harm caused by tobacco."

The strategy includes a number of measures aimed at cutting smoking including making council grounds smoke free, a programme to reduce the uptake of smoking among children in car, giving advice on smoke free homes to people adopting and fostering youngsters, setting up a Stop Smoking in Schools scheme and supporting trading standard officers to rigorously enforce tobacco sales laws.