Germany moves slowly towards banning tobacco advertising

After more than ten years of debate, tobacco advertising is finally to be widely banned according to a bill submitted by the CDU/CSU and SPD parties in the Bundestag. CDU and CSU MPs had previously blocked such an advertising ban for a long time. In 2016, the federal government passed a bill that would broadly ban tobacco advertising on billboards and in cinemas. However, due to resistance from the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, the bill was never adopted by the Bundestag. Germany is now the last country in the European Union where outdoor advertising for tobacco products is still permitted. The reason why these bans are taking so long to come into force is financial. Political parties are prohibited from accepting funding from tobacco companies, but the major parties in Germany turn a deaf ear and the tobacco lobby maintains a strong influence on the government, which leaves it up to each federal state to set the rules. From 1 January 2022, advertising on billboards or at bus stops should be banned for all conventional tobacco products. From 2023, the ban should also apply to heated tobacco products - and from 2024 to e-cigarettes. This gives the industry a very long time to adapt and also to challenge the provisions. Almost 100 million euros are currently spent on outdoor advertising by the tobacco industry in the country each year. This figure demonstrates the industry's desire to promote its products and attract new consumers. From 2021, advertising in cinemas for tobacco products should also be banned. In addition, free samples should no longer be distributed, this is currently the case, for example, at music festivals. All these advertising and promotional modalities clearly contradict Article 13 of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control , which Germany ratified in 2004[1]. The latter requires the Parties to this international treaty to implement a complete ban on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship within 5 years of the entry into force of the convention for the country. The ban on outdoor advertising, in cinemas and the ban on free samples, in combination with existing advertising bans, are an effective means "to achieve a further reduction in smoking rates", the bill underlines. The presence of outdoor advertising normalizes tobacco, a dangerous and deadly product. Advertising in cinemas, on the other hand, takes place in a positive context of entertainment and free distribution encourages initiation and increases consumption. All these elements combined seriously hamper health policies and reinforce smoking. According to the Federal Government's report on drugs, more than 120,000 people die prematurely each year in Germany as a result of tobacco use.[2].©Tobacco Free Generation

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Source : https://www.aerztezeitung.de/Politik/Strikteres-Tabak-Werbeverbot-soll-kommen-409786.html[1] https://www.oxysuisse.ch/cclat_ratif[2] https://tobaccoatlas.org/country/germany/©National Committee Against Smoking |