September 2018

In an interview with Die Welt, EU health commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis said Europe needs to think seriously about the accessibility of tobacco products and called for full implementation of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control by all signatories. When asked where money for preventative measures would come from, Andriukaitis said: “Consumption taxes on alcohol and tobacco, which in any case are quite low in many countries, could be increased by a Europe-wide uniform percentage, and the revenue from this increase would then flow into the EU budget.” Read More

Following the decision of some European countries, Belgian Health Minister Maggie De Block recently announced that an agreement had been found to introduce plain packaging for tobacco products. If the effective date of the measure has not yet been specified, the Minister of Health has announced that the ban on branding will apply to cigarettes, rolling tobacco and water pipe tobacco. Ms. De Block justified this measure as she believes it will reduce tobacco consumption as demonstrated in other countries. Read More