A not too long ago leaked inner doc from the European Fee has raised alarm inside the tobacco hurt discount (THR) group. The draft proposal outlines steep tax will increase on different nicotine merchandise—particularly e-liquids, nicotine pouches, and heated tobacco—suggesting a transfer that seems extra motivated by income than by public well being.
In keeping with the doc, the price of a 10ml bottle of e-liquid may rise by at the least €3.60 over the following 4 years. On the similar time, minimal taxes on nicotine pouches and heated tobacco would exceed 50% of their retail value. These will increase may disproportionately influence lower-income populations and international locations, creating monetary limitations to entry and doubtlessly pushing customers again towards smoking or illicit markets.
Via the years, hurt discount advocates have constantly argued that such insurance policies are short-sighted and counterproductive. Whereas the Fee might declare to be addressing public well being considerations, critics level out that pricing safer options out of attain undermines the very efforts to scale back tobacco-related hurt. When options change into inaccessible or unaffordable, moderately than quitting nicotine altogether, customers typically return to flamable cigarettes—essentially the most dangerous type of nicotine consumption.
From progress to punishment – the tax plans threaten smoke-free beneficial properties
THR teams just like the World Vapers’ Alliance (WVA) have been vocal of their opposition. Simply days earlier than the June 17, 2025 EPSCO Council assembly in Brussels, the WVA issued an open letter to EU well being ministers, urging them to position hurt discount on the forefront of tobacco and nicotine coverage. The letter emphasised that safer nicotine merchandise—similar to e-cigarettes and pouches—play a vital position in serving to people who smoke transition away from dangerous flamable tobacco.
In supporting their case, the WVA pointed to the success tales of Sweden, Greece, and the Czech Republic. Sweden is famend for being on monitor to change into Europe’s first smoke-free nation. Greece and Czechia have each achieved substantial reductions in smoking prevalence, with six- and seven-percentage-point drops respectively, in keeping with the newest Eurobarometer surveys. These nations have embraced hurt discount methods and maintained entry to reduced-risk merchandise—an method that’s yielding tangible outcomes.
Crippling the treatment
The message of tobacco hurt discount consultants is evident: penalizing safer options by extreme taxation runs counter to public well being targets. As a substitute, they advocate for a regulatory mannequin grounded in scientific proof and relative danger. By incentivizing the change from smoking to safer merchandise, policymakers can cut back tobacco-related illness and mortality much more successfully than with blanket restrictions or fiscal penalties.
Including scientific weight to the hurt discount argument is a latest research revealed in Scientific Stories, which revealed that switching from cigarettes to e-cigarettes or heated tobacco merchandise can result in fast enhancements in cardio health. Performed by researchers on the College of Catania’s Heart of Excellence for the Acceleration of Hurt Discount (CoEHAR), the research demonstrated that customers who transitioned from smoking confirmed measurable beneficial properties in VO₂max—a key indicator of cardiovascular and respiratory efficiency—inside simply 4 weeks.
The Price of Safer Decisions
These enhancements have been noticed throughout each e-cigarette and heated tobacco customers, providing sturdy proof that noncombustible nicotine options not solely cut back long-term well being dangers but additionally improve short-term bodily well-being. For youthful customers, who could also be much less involved with long-term illness, the promise of elevated health and stamina could also be a compelling incentive to give up smoking.
The research underscores the pressing have to shift public well being messaging away from fear-based narratives and towards methods that spotlight fast, relatable advantages. It additionally reinforces the vital distinction between smoking and vaping—a distinction that tax insurance policies ought to replicate if they’re to assist, moderately than hinder, tobacco hurt discount.
Because the European Union weighs its subsequent steps, it faces a alternative: pursue short-term fiscal acquire at the price of public well being progress, or undertake an evidence-based, risk-proportionate method that empowers thousands and thousands of people who smoke to maneuver towards a smoke-free future. The info, and the real-world success tales, make the higher path clear.
