SMOKE FREE PARTNERSHIP UPDATES

The European Network for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention (ENSP), the European Respiratory Society (ERS) and the Smoke Free Partnership (SFP) invite you to the celebration of World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) 2019, a high level event and award ceremony, jointly organized with the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe on 11 June 2019 from 15:00-18:00. The session is supported by the European Cancer Leagues (ECL), the European Cancer Patient Coalition (ECPC) and the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA).

Brussels, 20 May 2019 – The Smoke Free Partnership welcomes the entry into force of the EU system for the tracking and tracing of tobacco products, a revolutionary tool to curb illicit tobacco trade at the regional level. The EU tracking and tracing system, introduced in the EU tobacco Products Directive 2014/40/EU (1) and developed through secondary legislation (2) aims to control the supply chain of products legally manufactured or imported on the EU’s  internal market.

SFP Director Anca Toma Friedlaender wrote a blog for ASH Finland, examining in further detail what needs to be done to continuously boost tobacco control in Europe. You can read the full blog here.

Brussels, 25 March 2019 - Read the latest policy updates of the Smoke Free Partnership and the Coalition partners here.

22 mars 2019 – Tous les grands partis politiques soutiennent le principe de l’initiative Générations Sans Tabac, qui veut que tout enfant né à partir de 2019 puisse grandir sans tabac et ne se mette pas à fumer. Il existe en outre un soutien massif de la part des milieux politiques, qui désirent prendre les mesures nécessaires afin que la première génération sans tabac devienne une réalité d’ici 2037. Telles sont les conclusions du débat politique organisé ce matin à Bruxelles par l’Alliance pour une Société sans Tabac. L’Alliance souhaite que le principe défendu par l’initiative Générations Sans Tabac soit intégré aux accords de gouvernement fédéral et régionaux et que les prochains gouvernements élaborent un plan antitabac ambitieux et cohérent.

21 March 2019: The sesssion, titled “Responsible Lobbying: Aligning Profit for Public Good” should not include a tobacco industry representative: one cannot speak of integrity and responsibility when it comes to tobacco industry interference.

8th March 2019: The International Network of Women against Tobacco (INWAT) calls out the Phillip Morris International (PMI) “Week of Women,” – a so called celebration of International Women’s Day a hoax.

SFP's latest Mythbuster is offering argumentation, key facts and figures that disprove six misconceptions on tobacco taxation.

Kiev, 19 February 2019 - Ukraine reports a decrease in the sales of cigarettes, in line with the country's successful steps towards increasing tobacco taxes in the past years. The SFP Coalition Partner NGO Advocacy Center 'Life' has prepared a press release with additional information.

Brussels, 12 February: SFP together with a number of its Coalition partners expressed serious concern regarding the possible introduction of separate smoking areas indoors, which could lead to a reversal of smoke-free policy in the country. 

Brussels, 6 February 2019: SFP supported the EU4Health Campaign in its reaction to the European Commission Reflection Paper, 'Towards a Sustainable Europe by 2030'.

Brussels, 28 January 2019: SFP, together with more than 200 signatories from the global public health community, supported an open letter to the WHO Director General and the Executive Board.

Last week, the importance of tobacco taxation was discussed in further detail in a blog post in The Tobacco Atlas.

Brussels, 17 December: The latest SFP infographic on tobacco industry presence in the EU policy-making environment is out.

Brussels, 11 December 2018: the Smoke Free Partnership Coalition expresses its congratulations and support for the efforts taken by the Dutch Government towards a healthier life through the recent adoption of the National Prevention Agreement.

In September 2018, SFP submitted an updated Position Paper on tobacco taxation to the European Commission's consultation on the possible revision of the Tobacco Tax Directive. The latest updated version of the paper, titled Tobacco Tax for a Healthier Europe, can be downloaded further below. 

Brussels, 29 November 2018 - Read the latest policy updates of the Smoke Free Partnership and the Coalition partners here.

Kiev, 15 November 2018 - Newly published results from the Global Youth Tobacco Survey show improvements in smoking prevalence rates among Ukrainian children. The SFP Coalition Partner NGO Advocacy Center 'Life' has prepared a press release with additional information.

Vilnius, February 2017 - Early last year, Lithuania reached a consensus position on tobacco industry interference. On this occasion, our SFP Coalition partner, the Lithuanian National Tobacco and Alcohol Control Coalition (NTAKK) prepared a statement with more information.

Brussels, 6 June 2018: Over 25 public officials, MEPs, public health advocates, gathered at the European Parliament in Brussels to mark World No Tobacco Day 2018, on the theme “Tobacco Breaks Hearts” and focusing on the impact of tobacco use on cardiovascular diseases.

In September 2018, the SFP Board adopted the following statement of principles in relation to e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products in the context of the review of the Tobacco Tax Directive.

The Romanian Pneumology and Cardiology Societies have released an executive summary of the 2018 No Tobacco Campaign, available below.

Nofumadores.org have created a petition to ban all smoking on Spanish beaches. Having achieved almost 120,000 signatures in two weeks, Nofumadores intends to take those signatures to the Health Ministry in the first weeks of September. Spanish beaches welcome millions of people each year, therefore, the policy could have an important impact on second-hand smoking and also contribute to a reduction of toxic waste produced by cigarette butts in our oceans. The petition can be found at:

https://www.change.org/p/que-todas-las-playas-sean-espacios-libres-de-humo-de-tabaco

Sofia, Bulgaria: following the roundtable organised by SFP in conjunction with the Bulgarian Presidency of the EU on 25-26 April 2018, the report below captures the key discussion points from the meeting.