Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon's amendment, which said there had been a real terms increase in the NHS budget for this financial year, was carried with 80 MSPs voting for and 47 voting against.

BBC: Decision time

But a Congressional Budget Office analysis of the financial impact of a 50-cent-per-pack increase in cigarette taxes shows that while cutting the number of smokers trims government outlays over the short run, the increased longevity and higher end-of-life expenses of non-smokers eventually would cost taxpayers tens of billions of dollars more from Medicare and Social Security.

FORBES: Fewer Smokers Means Higher Taxpayer Costs, Study Finds