83 health experts urge EU: Don’t tax smokers out of life-saver alternative

STOCKHOLM – A coalition of 83 leading international health experts has issued a stark warning to the European Commission: imposing high taxes on safer nicotine alternatives will protect the cigarette trade, keep smokers smoking and cost lives.

In an open letter to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and her fellow Commissioners, the experts argue that the EU’s forthcoming review of the Tobacco Excise Directive risks undermining years of progress in reducing smoking-related deaths.

Leaked proposals from Brussels include imposing an EU-wide minimum tax on safer nicotine alternatives, which would result in a 700% tax increase on nicotine pouches for Swedes.

“Public health policies should use the best available scientific evidence,” the letter states. “It is, therefore, a matter of significant concern that recent EU public communications claiming that non-combustible nicotine delivery products pose health risks comparable to cigarettes contradict the best available evidence.”

The signatories, who are experts in public health, nicotine dependence and tobacco control, highlight that smoking still kills nearly 700,000 Europeans every year, with a quarter of EU citizens still smoking, including nearly a third of young people aged 15–24.

By contrast, countries that encourage switching to safer alternatives, such as Sweden, the UK, Japan and New Zealand, have seen dramatic reductions in smoking rates as well as significant public health benefits.

Warning that a “tax-raid” on safer, smoke-free products such as e-cigarettes

and nicotine pouches would be a catastrophic step backward, the letter states: “Fiscal and regulatory provisions that discourage the switch from smoking to less risky alternatives are unethical and protect the cigarette trade.”

The experts urge the EU to remain committed to evidence-based, science-driven policymaking that prioritises saving lives over ideology or revenue.

“Commissioners, public health in Europe stands at a crossroads,” the letter concludes. “Implementing punitive taxes on potentially life-saving products will harm public health, keep smokers smoking and set a dangerous precedent globally.”

The letter is endorsed by internationally respected scientists, clinicians and harm reduction advocates, including Prof. John Britton (UK), Dr. Karl Fagerström (Sweden), Prof. Kenneth Warner (USA), Prof. David Nutt (UK) and Dr. Konstantinos Farsalinos (Greece), as well as organisations such as European Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (ETHRA), International Association for Smoking Control and Harm Reduction (SCOHRE), Spanish Medical Platform for Tobacco Harm Reduction (PRDT) and Medical Observatory on Harm Reduction (MOHRE).