A NEW report says children and young people in the North West are being hoodwinked by glitzy cigarette packaging.

The British Heart Foundation said almost a fifth of 16 to 25-year-olds in the region make health assumptions based on branding.

Their survey showed some youngsters believed a branded cigarette pack was less harmful than another based on the packet design alone.

The charity commissioned the report ahead of a Government consultation on whether the UK should adopt plain packaging for tobacco products.

More than 10 per cent of those in the North West said they would choose a brand because it was considered ‘cool’.

Betty McBride, of the British Heart Foundation, said: “As informed adults we know that smoking is a deadly addiction that kills half of all smokers.

“ But young people are not always fully aware of the risks, and the power of branding holds more sway.

“Tobacco advertising is rightly banned in the UK. Yet current glitzy packaging clearly still advertises tobacco on the cigarette box.

"It’s an absurd loophole.”