Smokers who live in council housing could be banned from lighting up under a new crackdown on cigarettes.
The legal age for buying cigarettes in England should be raised to 21 and then rise by a year every year, a new report has advised.
The findings of the independent review led by Dr Javed Khan OBE will be considered and a response published as part of the government’s Health Disparities White Paper.
Commissioned by Health Secretary Sajid Javid, it sets out a raft of recommendations to support Downing Street meet its smoke-free ambition by 2030.
Dr Khan said in the paper he believes those living in council-owned properties should among the first to feel the effects.
The report urges officials to paint cigarettes green and ban films showing smoking, and that anyone in social housing should be pressured to quit.
He wrote: "In the USA, smoking is prohibited in all social housing. I am not proposing that for now."
However, he said "specific actions" must be taken in council properties to stop smokers as well as banning smoking in pub gardens.
He wrote: "A significant proportion of new tenancies and new developments - 70 per cent - should be smoke-free to reflect the 70 per cent of people in social housing that do not smoke.
"Student housing, sheltered housing and hostels for homeless people, and accommodation for people transitioning from prison or inpatient mental health services should also do the same."
In his report, he advocates making it impossible for Brits to smoke in the future.
He wrote: "I recommend increasing the age of sale from 18, by one year, every year, until no one can buy a tobacco product in this country."
Mr Javid yesterday refused to rule out raising the age to buy cigarettes from 18, and said the government must "look at radical ways to reduce smoking rates".
Almost six million people in England smoke, and tobacco remains the single biggest cause of preventable illness and death.
Tackling tobacco use and supporting smokers to quit would help prevent 15 types of cancers – including lung cancer, throat cancer and acute myeloid leukaemia - a key objective of the NHS Long Term Plan.
Recent data shows one in four deaths from all cancers were estimated to be from smoking.
The independent review found smoking causes a disproportionate burden on the most disadvantaged families and communities – at its most extreme, smoking prevalence is 4.5 times higher in Burnley than in Exeter.
Smokers in the most deprived areas of the country spend a higher proportion of their income on tobacco.
