Europe’s path to the Tobacco Products Directive 3.0

On 29 June, EACA joined the webinar “Europe’s path to the Tobacco Products Directive 3.0” organised by ECL – the Association of European Cancer Leagues. The webinar focused on the report on the Tobacco Manufacturing Directive, on the progress achieved by this Directive and its future direction.

On 20 May 2021, the European Commission published its first report on the Tobacco Products Directive 2014/40EU (TPD), as required by Article 28 (1) of the TPD. According to the report, the implementation of the TPD has led to a steady decrease in people smoking and tobacco use. However, it also notes that improvements should be made to implement the Directive more effectively at the national level and to take the current market developments more into account.

What does the report say?

The report concludes that the TPD has improved tobacco control and public health over the years, while the European Court of Justice has confirmed the Directive’s validity.

The Directive has achieved the European Commission’s target of a 2% reduction in tobacco consumption within five years of transposition while also implementing the WHO WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. In addition, there has been a 3% decrease in smoking among people over 15 years of age from 2014 to 2020, as well as in young people.

The TPD has also contributed to further strengthening the rules of a comprehensive tobacco control policy in the EU. The report notes that there are differences in compliance and harmonisation at the national level. Furthermore, the new systems require a considerable degree of resources, which several Member States lack. Finally, the report urges consideration of the European plan to combat Cancer and the WHO target to reduce tobacco use by 30% by 2025.

Looking ahead: The European plan to beat Cancer.

On 3 February 2021, the European Commission announced the Europe Beating Cancer Plan, which also calls for reducing tobacco use. The goal is to achieve that less than 5% of the population smoke by 2040.

Background on the TPD

The Tobacco Products Directive (TPD), which was adopted in 2014, includes provisions on the “manufacture, presentation and sale of tobacco and related products” (European Commission, 2021), which sets out requirements for manufacturers wishing to import tobacco and related products into the EU market.