ETHRA’s monthly roundup of news: EU SANT Committee - French Nicotine Pouch Ban - Irish Extortionate Vape Tax - UK Disposable Vape Ban - UK Tobacco and Vapes Bill Returns - Kids No Longer Smoke Cigarettes. Why Aren’t We Celebrating? - Science vs. dogma: the choice is now - EU Should Follow Swedish Example. Read on for more.
Contents:
EU Parliament SANT Committee
The leaders of the centre-right, socialist and liberal groups have clarified the powers of a new European Parliament committee on Public Health (SANT). Pascal Canfin MEP (Renew) has indicated that tobacco control policy may fall under the remit of the new Committee.
Read more here:
https://www.euractiv.com/section/agriculture-food/news/epp-socialists-and-renew-strike-deal-on-new-public-health-committee-powers/
On 17th October the Subcommittee on Public Health held a debate on Smoke and aerosol-free environments. There was a presentation of the Commission proposal for a Council Recommendation by Antonio Parenti, Director for Public health, Cancer and Health security, DG SANTE
Watch the replay here:
https://multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/en/webstreaming/sant-committee-meeting_20241017-0900-COMMITTEE-SANT
UN Report Slammed
Harm reduction advocate Nancy Loucas has exposed the flaws contained in a UN Special Rapporteur’s harm reduction report, calling it a dangerous setback in the global fight against smoking-related deaths.
Read more here:
https://www.planetofthevapes.co.uk/news/vaping-news/2024-10-15_un-report-slammed.html
Denmark
A majority in the Danish Parliament wants to ban all flavours in nicotine pouches apart from tobacco and menthol, and a nicotine cap of 9 mg per nicotine pouch.
Read more here:
https://www.vejpkollen.se/en/2024/10/dansk-folketing-vil-nedbringe-forbruget-af-nikotin/
Finland
The Finnish Parliament has decided to limit nicotine content of pouches to 16.5 mg per gram and pouches must weigh between 0.5 and 1 gram. Flavours will also be limited and online sales banned.
Read more here:
https://www.vejpkollen.se/en/2024/10/finland-reglerar-nikotinpasar-forbud-mot-smaker-och-natforsaljning/
More from Finland
Vapers Finland published an open letter to journalists and the media regarding recent scaremongering articles around EVALI.
Read the letter here:
Kirje EVALI-uutisoinnin vastuuhenkilöille / Letter to the persons responsible for EVALI news
France
In a further blow to tobacco harm reduction in France, Health Minister Genevieve Darrieussecq, announced that she intends to ban nicotine pouches.
Read more here:
https://www.politico.eu/article/french-health-minister-announces-upcoming-ban-on-nicotine-pouches/
https://www.vapingpost.com/2024/11/03/france-has-decided-to-ban-nicotine-pouches-despite-their-known-effectivity-for-smoking-cessation/
Ireland
The Irish Government have announced that they are going to impose a tax of 50 cent per millilitre on all e-juice, the highest rate so far by any EU member state. A 10 ml container now retailing for €4.99 will have €5 added with VAT on top of that. For people who buy the best value option, juice at €1.50 it will add 333% to the cost of vaping. Short fill bottles which are on avg €25 will rise to over €75, an increase of 200%.
Read more here:
https://nnai510701598.wordpress.com/2024/10/20/tax-on-quitting-smoking/
Ireland’s government has cynically “rammed through” a move to impose heavy taxes on vape e-liquids without consultation, tobacco harm reduction advocates say:
https://filtermag.org/ireland-vape-tax/amp/
Italy
The provision that bans online sales of nicotine products has been published in the Official Journal.
UK
The UK Government has reintroduced the Tobacco and Vapes Bill. The Labour administration claims that the Bill will “phase out smoking, protect the public, NHS and economy and put us on track to a smokefree UK”. A separate piece of legislation will see single use disposable vapes banned from 1 June 2025. Measures included in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill are:
Read more here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/smoking-ban-introduced-to-protect-children-and-most-vulnerable
What to expect from the UK's disposable vape ban? “more smoking, more illicit trade, more innovative workarounds that will leave the authorities flat-footed, and finally no recycling schemes or age-secure retailing.”
https://filtermag.org/uk-ban-disposable-vapes-2025/amp/
More from the UK
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, announced plans to punish people for using vapes to quit smoking by increasing taxation on all e-liquids (regardless of nicotine content) by £2.20 per 10 ml. The tax will take effect from 1 October 2026.
Read more here: https://vaping360.com/vape-news/8271/uk-government-announces-vape-tax/
UK consumer advocacy association NNA UK called the proposal a misguided assault on quitting smoking:
https://nnalliance.org/nnanews/news/404-the-chancellors-new-vape-tax-proposals-are-a-misguided-assault-on-quitting-smoking
Kids No Longer Smoke Cigarettes. Why Aren’t We Celebrating?
The decrease in cigarette smoking among American youths is one of the great public health triumphs of the present century. Yet, few people are talking about it. Public health agencies and tobacco control organisations mention it, if at all, in passing. Media coverage is minimal.
Read more here:
https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/10.2105/AJPH.2024.307841
Science vs. dogma on nicotine: the choice is now
The most damaging myth of all is the idea that all nicotine products are as bad as smoking. And there is basically no argument to support this. Nicotine may be what keeps people smoking , but it is not what kills them.
Read more here:
https://amp.redaccionmedica.com/opinion/karl-fagerstrom-5543/ciencia-vs-dogma-sobre-la-nicotina-la-eleccion-es-ahora-3030
Switching to electronic cigarettes following percutaneous coronary intervention
A landmark study from South Korea found that switching from smoking to vapes has the same benefits as quitting without alternatives for patients after coronary angioplasty.
Read more here:
https://www.ecigarette-research.org/research/index.php/research/2024/282-ecig-cvd-2024
Something to watch:
Beatrice Timgren, MEP for the Sweden Democrats in the ECR group, proposes that the EU takes after the Swedish harm reduction policy, where non-combustible alternatives to cigarettes are promoted.
