HEALTH charities are urging councillors to investigate whether health services have cut more than £440,000 from stop-smoking services at a time when demand is expected to soar.

The charities, which include the British Heart Foundation (BHF), Quit and The Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation, are concerned that in the run-up to the July 1 ban on smoking in public places, services to help people give up are being cut.

According to figures originally obtained by the Conservative Party using Freedom of Information legislation, almost half of all English primary care trusts (PCTs) have cut their budgets this year for stop-smoking services.

The charities have sent information packs to councils asking them to challenge trusts on the issue.

Seven trusts in the North are on the charities' list -Middlesbrough, County Durham, Newcastle, North Tyneside, North Yorkshire and York, Darlington and Hartlepool.

BHF chief executive Peter Hollins said: "This is a golden opportunity that will not come around again and we urge councillors to make sure PCTs make the most of it. It would be a crying shame if smokers needing help had to be turned away because services were understaffed."

The North-East has the highest smoking rates in England.

Professor Peter Kelly, director of public health at Middlesbrough PCT, said; "Smoking cessation funding at Middlesbrough PCT has remained constant over the last three years.

"Middlesbrough PCT stop-smoking service has recently been ranked sixth best in the country by the Healthcare Commission."

Spokesmen for County Durham PCT and Darlington PCT also denied there had been a reduction in funding.

A North Yorkshire and York PCT spokesman said: "We have not cut the stop-smoking budget."

Similarly, a spokeswoman for Newcastle and North Tyneside PCTs denied that stop-smoking services had been cut.

This was echoed by Hartlepool PCT, where a spokeswoman said "we are not aware of any cuts".

Councillor John Priestley, chairman of the health scrutiny sub-committee on Durham County Council, said: "I am surprised to hear the claim that investment in stop smoking services is being reduced. If I get a request from the charities, I will get the officers to investigate."

Coun Priestley said he thought the forthcoming workplace and enclosed public space smoking ban was "wonderful" and that the sooner it came in, the better.