Brussels calls for smoking and vaping ban on bar and restaurant terraces, at swimming pools, in playgrounds and at bus stops

The European Commission has set itself the goal of reducing the number of smokers to just 5% of the population by 2040. In Spain, it is estimated that 23% of those aged 15 and over smoke

Álvaro Soto

Madrid

Tuesday, 17 September 2024, 19:08

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The European Commission this Tuesday called on the governments of the 27 EU member states to extend smoking bans to areas such as bar and restaurant terraces, children's playgrounds, swimming pools and bus stops, where non-smokers are particularly exposed. In addition, the EU executive called on member states to extend anti-smoking policies to emerging products such as heated tobacco products and electronic cigarettes (vaping), which are increasingly reaching very young consumers.

The EU recommendation is not binding because health policies are the exclusive competence of individual countries, but it shows Brussels' determination to reduce the number of smokers on the continent as much as possible. The European Plan to Beat Cancer sets the goal of creating a Tobacco Free Generation by 2040, in which fewer than 5% of the population uses tobacco. Currently, 26% of the population and 29% of young people aged 15-24 are tobacco users, while in Spain 23% of those aged 15 and over smoke.

Every year, 700,000 people lose their lives in the European Union due to tobacco consumption, including tens of thousands from second-hand smoke, said the European Commission, which calls for "denormalising the consumption of tobacco and emerging products, combating nicotine addiction and improving preventive health".

In Spain, the Ministry of Health and the regions agreed in April to implement the comprehensive plan for the prevention and control of smoking 2024-2027, but it still remains to be negotiated which areas will be considered smoke-free, i.e. whether smoking will be allowed on bar and restaurant terraces and in the rest of the places now identified by the Commission. In any case, the EU executive's recommendation supports the plans of Mónica García's health department, which is also committed to raising the price of cigarette packets and tightening up the regulation of vaping.

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