PASSIVE smoking has been confirmed as a killer in a report by experts.

The leaked report by the Scientific Committee on Tobacco and Health says that second-hand smoke significantly increases the risk of lung cancer and heart disease.

Jan Hutchinson, director of public health for the Bolton Primary Care Trust, is now urging the Government to protect non-smokers from potentially fatal diseases by banning smoking in pubs and restaurants.

She says the report confirmed what doctors all over the world already knew.

Mrs Hutchinson said: "We have known for a long time, the damage done to people's lungs and hearts through second hand smoke. This report just adds more weight to that and passive smoking is a great area of concern to us.

"Clearly, lots of people's health is affected by smoke, yet many of those are not smokers. I am particularly concerned about children who have no choice about passive smoking.

The pro-smoking lobby and the tobacco industry have disputed claims that passive smoking is a signicant danger to non-smokers. But the report by some of Britain's leading medical scientists concluded "second-hand smoke represents a substantial public health hazard."

It reveals that there is 24 per cent increased risk of lung cancer for non-smokers who are exposed to second-hand smoke.

The experts said that the weight of evidence for the risk of heart disease among passive smokers was now stronger than their last report in 1998 - with around a 25 per cent increased danger.

They said that children were at particular risk from second-hand smoke.

The Government is preparing to publish its long-awaited Public Health White Paper next month which is expected to include measures to limit smoking in public places but stop short of a total ban, covering all restaurants and pubs.

New figures have shown that more than 500 people a year die in Bolton because of smoking.

The North-west Public Health Team, based in Manchester, said Bolton had the sixth highest rate of smoking related deaths in the North-west.

During 2002, 538 people in Bolton died because of smoking.

Of these, 317 were men and 221 women.

The worst area was Liverpool, which had 1,069 deaths, closely followed by Manchester with 877 deaths. In Bury, 381 people died of smoking-related diseases in the same year and 531 people died in Salford.

Throughout the North-west 14,700 deaths a year are related to tobacco.

If you want to quit, call Fresh Focus on 01204 360008 or the NHS Quit Smoking Helpline 0800 169 0169.