Chapter twelve

Commission communication on reducing tobacco consumption

Greeks are the heaviest smokers in the Community, followed by the Danes, Spaniards and Austrians. Conversely, the lightest smokers are the Finns, Swedes and Portuguese.

The problem

The steady increase in the numbers of young women who take up smoking are attributed to changes in lifestyle and successful niche marketing. If unchecked, this trend could lead to a narrowing of the current higher life expectancy of women over men. The narrowing health gap is already seen as the toll of smoking emerges. Figures for the incidence of lung cancer already reflect this trend.

There is a remarkable rise in smoking among young people from a rate of around 1% at age 11 to between 20% and 33% at age 15 years. Many young people are clearly ignoring the evidence of the harmful effects of tobacco.

There is a higher prevalence of smoking in lower socio-economic groups as better educated, better paid and more health conscious individuals increasingly avoid smoking. People on lower incomes spend a disproportionate amount on tobacco as, due to its addictive properties, it often takes priority over other household expenditure.

For various reasons, non-smokers traditionally are less well catered for than smokers. Smoking is long established and evidence of the damage caused by passive smoking is recent.

These trends, the Communication stresses, highlight the need for a targeted approach toward combating smoking. The generic message that smoking is bad for you remains valid but needs to be supplemented by measures targeted at sectors especially vulnerable to smoking.

Community dimension

• the Europe Against Cancer Programme, which focuses efforts for tobacco control and conducts public surveys;

• the Advisory Committee for Cancer Prevention, which liaises with the Commission by providing information and expertise;

• Council directive on television without frontiers (89/52/EEC) which harmonised a ban on television advertising of tobacco products;

• Council directives (89/622/EEC and 92/41/EEC) on the approximation of the laws relating to the labelling of tobacco products--providing for health warnings, and information on nicotine and tar content;

• directive (92/41/EEC) also banned the marketing of certain types of tobacco for oral use;

• Council directive (90/239/EEC) on approaches to laws concerning maximum tar yields. This provides for a progressive reduction in tar content to a maximum of 15mg per cigarette from the beginning of 1993 and 12 mg from the beginning of 1998.

• the Council resolution of November 1996 on the reduction of smoking in the EU which calls on the Commission to evaluate and survey smoking reduction efforts in the member states, examine future steps and provide support.

Options for future action

• monitor tobacco consumption through data collection and epidemiological studies using the programme of action on health monitoring;

• develop a code of practice for smoke-free environments children, based on the existing European Code Against Cancer. Put more efforts into researching the whys and wherefores of youth smoking;

• propose that nicotine be considered a dependency, thus allowing it to be tackled through Community public health programmes;

• evaluate and review the possible toxicity and health consequences of additives to tobacco products;

• consider case for the further reduction in the maximum tar level per cigarette;

• review the existing labelling directive to evaluate the effectiveness of labels in informing customers of smoking dangers. The possibility of larger, more visible health warnings is included in the labelling directive and the Commission could examine the issue with the member states;

• consider the definition of "light" or "low tar" tobacco products, as such descriptions are undefined and may be misleading;

• promote measures to raise public awareness of the dangers of tobacco smoke to unborn infants;

• update on a regular basis the Council resolution on smoking in public places, with a view to identifying the best and worst practices in the member states. Discuss the issue in the framework of the Agreement on Social Policy in relation to smoke-free working environments;

• encourage higher tax levels on tobacco within the member states;

• search options for the reform on the common organisation of the raw tobacco market, including an increase from 1% to 2% in the proportion of the premium reserved for the Tobacco Research and Information Fund.

Cooperation between member states

• measures aimed at protecting non-smokers from passive smoking;

• setting of specific targets for a reduction in smoking in the population. The example of Ireland, where the target is for a reduction in smoking to 20% of the population by 2000, could be usefully taken up by member states;

• the reinforcement of national rules aimed at limiting the sale of tobacco products to adults and at restricting access of young people to cigarettes;

• increases in the price of tobacco in real terms;

• greater protection for workers from environmental tobacco smoke;

• limiting tobacco sponsorship and merchandising of tobacco products at major sporting, musical or cultural events that are likely to be televised in order to avoid indirect publicity for tobacco products;

• increased funding of health education measures targeted at smokers and of voluntary organisations working for smoking reduction;

• the provision of smoking cessation medications at minimal or no cost to smokers.

International role

Follow up