European doctors on the revision of the EU Tobacco Taxation Directive

CPME supports the Commission proposal to increase the minimum tax and extend the scope of the directive to new tobacco and nicotine products. It also highlights counteracting the tobacco and nicotine industry tactics to interfere in policy-making.

CPME agrees with the Commission that increasing minimum EU tax rates is urgently needed to align with Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan’s 2040 goal of a tobacco-free Europe. The effect of increasing minimum EU tax rates is particularly pronounced among young people as they are the most price-sensitive demographic for the use of tobacco and nicotine products. Moreover, cross-border shopping for these products is a problem, where price differences exist, and can be disincentivised by harmonising the costs among EU Member States.

It is crucial that the scope of the Directive is extended to new tobacco and nicotine products (e.g. e-cigarettes, heated tobacco, nicotine pouches, and nicotine synthetic analogues) which are currently taxed in different ways and at different rates depending on the EU Member State. Since the latest update to the Directive, a new generation of nicotine products has emerged, often marketed as “less harmful” or “reduced risk” alternatives to cigarettes. These products have increasing popularity, especially among young people.

Tobacco and nicotine industry designs products, implements marketing campaigns and works to shape policy environments to help them addict particularly youth people. The industry is exploiting also EU laws to prevent the implementation of health measures at the EU level, thus facilitating a prioritisation of commercial interests over public health. Meetings between tobacco lobbyists and MEPs have intensified since the publication of the Commission proposal as the industry is trying to secure exemptions from the regulations for alternative nicotine products. In the process of updating the EU Tobacco Taxation Directive, the European Commission must invest more efforts to adhere strictly to international commitments, like mentioned in the legally binding WHO FCTC Article 5.3, to protect these policies from commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry.

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