To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research her Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on (i) the prevalence of the depiction of smoking on television and in films and (ii) trends in such depiction over the last 10 years; and if she will make a statement. (131146)

The Department has not commissioned any surveys on this area. However, we are committed in the 2004 Choosing Health White Paper to pressing the responsible bodies to reduce the depiction of smoking in television and films. As a result, the British Board of Film Classification has revised its guidance to take account of portrayal of smoking in its classification of films. Following pressure from the Department, the Ofcom TV broadcasting guidelines have been tightened up to discourage the portrayal of smoking before the 9.00 pm watershed in a glamorous or positive way, unless editorially necessary. In line with the smokefree law coming into force in July 2007, no smoking will be allowed in this year's Big Brother house.