European Commission calls for tighter tobacco regulations

The European Commission is calling for tougher action on tobacco control. While the continent has seen a slight decline in consumption over the past decade, public health efforts must be stepped up to achieve a tobacco-free generation by 2040.[1].

Achieving a tobacco-free European generation by 2040

The European Beating Cancer Plan is behind the goal of achieving the first tobacco-free generation by 2040, i.e. the first generation with a smoking prevalence of less than 5%. Currently, 25% of European Union citizens are tobacco users. Smoking is identified by the European Plan as the "single greatest avoidable health risk in the European Union", causing 27% of all cancers.

The prospect of the revision of the Tobacco Products Directive

This goal of a tobacco-free generation by 2040 was reiterated by Stella Kyriakides, the European Commissioner for Health, on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day on 31 May. According to her, European Union regulations have played a leading role in reducing tobacco consumption, but must now be strengthened. In this respect, the revision of the Tobacco Products Directive will be a crucial step for public health. The revision of the directive will have the task of proposing a regulatory framework for new tobacco and nicotine products, which have appeared on the market in large numbers since 2014. The generalisation of plain packaging, the establishment of a monitoring and tracing system that is fully independent of the tobacco industry and the introduction of market supply quotas are also among the challenges in the fight against smoking at European level.

Furthermore, the 2011 European directive on tobacco excise duties is currently under review. The issue of tax increases, as the most effective instrument to reduce smoking prevalence, is a major health issue and is the subject of intense lobbying by cigarette manufacturers, who aim to maintain the lowest possible tax levels.

FT

[1] Euractiv, EU wants tobacco-free generation as smoking numbers rise worldwide, 04/06/2021, (accessed 07/06/2021)

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