Merseyside smokers who tried to give up last year had a higher chance of success.
NHS figures show the number of people setting a target date to quit smoking fell by 16% in Merseyside, from 12,876 in the year ending March 2020, to 10,791 over the same period last year.
READ MORE: Thug jumps on Range Rover after 'scrambler bike' catches fire in crash
That follows a recent trend, with national figures showing the number of smokers making the decision to quit has fallen each year since 2011/12.
But it may also be partially explained by the pandemic.
Smoking cessation charity ASH (Action on Smoking and Health) says its research shows around 60% of local authorities commission some or all of stop smoking services from primary care providers - which were on the front line of the fight against Covid-19 and less likely to be able to provide support to smokers last year.
Many services also rely on referrals from GP practices and pharmacies, which were also disrupted by the pandemic, while some simply stayed away from support services due to the risk of catching or spreading the virus.
It could also be that many felt that a global pandemic was not the best time to give up smoking.
Homeworking, added financial pressures, furlough from work, and anxieties over catching the virus or a close family member falling ill may have convinced many smokers that it was not worth the extra stress of trying to give up.
But Stop Smoking figures show that those who did make the decision to try to quit had greater success than smokers the previous year.
ASH believes this was a “pandemic effect”, with those who did make the decision to give up showing high levels of determination.
Across all Merseyside last year 7,019 smokers successfully quit. That means 65% who made the attempt were successful, compared to only 54% the previous year.
On Merseyside, quitters had the best chance of success rate in Knowsley, where seven in 10 were successful (71%) compared to 62% in Wirral, the area with the lowest success rate.
Smokefree Liverpool are now offering a range of support options
Samantha O'Loughlin, Regional Health Improvement Manager at Smokefree Liverpool, said: "We found that during the pandemic we still had great numbers of clients accessing the service and quitting smoking in Liverpool.
"We hope that over the coming year more people will continue to quit with our service which has improved access and more flexibility than ever before.
"Smokefree Liverpool are now offering a range of support options including telephone, video and Face-Face one-one appointments. Anyone wishing to stop smoking will be offered an appointment with a member of our team to discuss the products available to help them and their chosen product will be sent directly to a pharmacy of their choice.
"The support programme is tailored to each individual for a 12 week period with the end goal of being not only a none smoker but also completely nicotine free. Quitting smoking has never been easier.
"For anyone wishing to quit smoking please complete our online referral form www.smokefreeliverpool.co.uk/referral-form or contact our freephone number 08000614212."
Support for smokers has been in decline for decade due to Government underfunding
Nationally, 59% of smokers making the attempt were successful in the year ending March 2021, compared to 51% during the year leading to the pandemic.
That is a much higher proportion of successful quitters than any other year in the last decade. Since 2010/11 the percentage of successful quitters has hovered at between 49% and 52%.
Hazel Cheeseman, deputy chief executive of ASH, said: "Many areas were able to maintain support to smokers during the pandemic but those providing services through pharmacies and GPs struggled as these professional staff were the front line of the Covid-19 response.
"However, support for smokers has been in decline for a decade now because of underfunding by the Government.
"The gap in funding should be filled by a levy on tobacco companies, something widely backed by the health sector and due to be debated as part of the Health and Care Bill this week.
"Government should seize the opportunity to fund services which could help thousands more to stop smoking."
Across all England, smokers using Stop Smoking services were most likely to successfully quit in Yorkshire and the Humber, where 71% of 16,765 were able to give up.
Smokers in the South West had the lowest success rate, of 53%.
Of local authority areas, smokers in North East Lincolnshire had the most to be proud of, where 82% of 548 people managed to give up cigarettes.
At the other end of the scale, only 12 of 57 people making the attempt were able to quit the habit in Harrow in London.
In England as a whole last year, 178,815 smokers set a date to quit the habit last year, a 19% drop from 221,678 the previous year. Of those, 105,403 successfully quit.
