Walking regularly could help to prevent the deaths of tens of thousands of people every year, according to a new report.

The Walking Works report by the Ramblers and Macmillan Cancer Support said walking was a free activity which could transform people’s health, saving an estimated 37,000 lives each year.

The reports says that if everyone in England did the recommended 150 minutes of moderate physical exercise every week it would prevent 6,700 cases of breast cancer, stop 4,700 people getting colorectal cancer and lead to nearly 300,000 fewer cases of type 2 diabetes a year.

Last week a study by the British Medical Journal found that exercise could be as beneficial as pills for some conditions including heart disease, while another study said walking an hour a day could significantly cut the risk of breast cancer.

“We’re facing a serious crisis of inactivity, but there is a simple solution,” said Benedict Southworth, chief executive of the Ramblers. “We need to see greater investment in initiatives which support and promote walking as the most accessible and affordable way for people to get active.”

Kevin Fenton, director for health and wellbeing at Public Health England, said that inactivity had “life threatening consequences” which had to be addressed. “We need to understand the kind of societal shift that needs to happen before we truly combat the pandemic of inactivity,” said Fenton. “In England 61 per cent of adults and 30 per cent of children between 2 and 15 are classed as overweight or obese. The associated health problems of this inactivity are costing the economy up to £10bn a year.”