ETHRA’s monthly roundup of news: EU Survey sample answers and reasoning - Call for Evidence submission - TED - French Pouch ban - Dutch illicit market expands - PRDT Letter to the Commission - The worst idea in the history of tobacco control - Zyn MRTP - Is it ethical to prohibit nicotine products? Country updates. Read on for more.
Contents:
The EU survey - sample answers and reasoning
On 22 May 2026, the European Commission published a survey [Tobacco products and tobacco advertising – revision of EU rules] to support the development of the next round of tobacco and nicotine product regulation, with Commission proposals expected later in 2026. ETHRA published a PDF which reproduces the 23 survey questions and available answers, with sample answers and reasoning.
See the document here:
https://ethra.co/news/189-the-eu-survey-sample-answers-and-reasoning
Impossible by design: the EU survey on future tobacco and nicotine policy
ETHRA published a briefing which identified eight generic problems with the consultation questionnaire and provided an annex with more specific comments on the twenty-three questions.
See the briefing here:
https://ethra.co/news/187-impossible-by-design-the-eu-survey-on-future-tobacco-and-nicotine-policy
Tobacco products and tobacco advertising – revision of EU rules
On 15 June ETHRA submitted to the EU's Call for Evidence on the Tobacco products and tobacco advertising – revision of EU rules. We also included a critique of the Public Consultation questionnaire, which is the next step in the revision, and a letter regarding misleading statements by the European Commission.
See the submission here:
https://ethra.co/submissions/190-tobacco-products-and-tobacco-advertising-revision-of-eu-rules
Tobacco Tax Directive
The European Parliament has rejected two attempts to set minimum EU taxes for safer nicotine products, including a Commission proposal which ignored major differences in risk between combustible and non-combustible products. A narrower ECON proposal, based on a “less harm, lower tax” principle, also failed.
Read more here:
https://filtermag.org/eu-nicotine-tax-parliament-rejections/
Finland
Vapers Finland has objected to a Finnish government proposal that would allow housing associations to extend smoking bans inside homes, balconies and private outdoor spaces to vaping.
Read more here:
https://vapers.fi/2026/06/lausunto-hallituksen-esitykseen-tupakkalain-muutoksista-asuntoyhteisoissa/
France
France’s ban on nicotine pouches is now facing scrutiny in Brussels, with MEPs asking the Commission to assess whether criminalising products legally bought elsewhere in the EU breaches single market rules.
Read more here:
https://europeanconservative.com/articles/news/frances-nicotine-ban-sparks-eu-legal-showdown/
Netherlands
A Dutch government-commissioned study found that 87% of people who vape in the Netherlands are using illegal products or purchasing through illicit channels, proving once again that flavour bans don’t work.
Read more here:
https://www.dutchnews.nl/2026/04/most-vape-users-buying-illegal-products-study-finds/
More from the Netherlands
The Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu (RIVM) calls for plain packaging of vaping products to reduce their appeal
Poland
Poland has notified draft legislation that would ban flavours in nicotine pouches and prohibit all new nicotine products not covered by the EU Tobacco Products Directive (TPD).
Read more here:
https://pouchpatrol.com/legislation-policy/polands-proposed-flavour-ban-risks-undermining-eu-law-and-smoking-cessation/
Spain
The Platform for Tobacco Harm Reduction published the letter sent to the European Commission in relation to the consultation process linked to the evaluation of the Tobacco Products Directive and the Tobacco Advertising Directive, as well as the future regulation of tobacco and nicotine products in the European Union.
Read the letter here:
https://prdtabaquismo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Letter-to-European-Commission.pdf
Sweden
Sweden has raised strong objections to France’s ban on nicotine pouches, warning that Swedish travellers could face severe penalties simply for carrying white snus for personal use.
Read more here:
https://swedenherald.com/article/swedens-demand-in-paris-dont-touch-white-snus
The worst idea in the history of tobacco control
Clive Bates warns that Palau’s proposal to place nicotine under the UN psychotropic drugs convention would amount to a global attack on tobacco harm reduction.
Read more here:
https://clivebates.substack.com/p/the-worst-idea-in-the-history-of
FDA Says ZYN Can Be Marketed as Lower-Risk Than Cigarettes
The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday authorized ZYN to be marketed as a lower-risk alternative to cigarettes, the first time a nicotine pouch has cleared that high regulatory bar.
Read more here:
https://dcjournal.com/fda-says-zyn-can-be-marketed-as-lower-risk-than-cigarettes
Is it ethical to prohibit nicotine products?
Professor Jean-François Etter argues that bans on non-combustible nicotine and tobacco products fail basic tests of ethics, public health and good governance. Etter challenges the common justification for prohibition, that young people will move to smoking, while pointing out that such policies restrict lower-risk products and leave cigarettes widely available.
Read more here:
https://profetter.substack.com/p/prohibiting-non-combustible-nicotine
What's wrong with WHO? Ten fundamentals on tobacco and nicotine
Clive Bates argues that WHO has lost sight of the fundamental public health objective: reducing smoking-related death and disease. Instead of recognising vapes, pouches and heated tobacco products as far lower-risk alternatives to cigarettes, WHO uses World No Tobacco Day to amplify fear, misleading statistics, and prohibitionist policies.
Read more here:
https://clivebates.substack.com/p/whats-wrong-with-who-ten-fundamentals
Something to watch:
Dr. Arielle Selya talks about the science behind nicotine dependence, addiction, and tobacco harm reduction.
