Across much of Europe, policymakers are once again approaching tobacco control through the lens of restriction rather than harm reduction. A leaked draft of the European Union’s proposed mandate for the Conference of the Parties of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control suggests a strategy that promotes an outdated view of nicotine consumption, to the detriment of EU citizens, whom the European Commission’s public health policies are intended to protect.

The European Commission’s current position would effectively limit the potential of far less harmful smoke-free nicotine products to displace far more harmful cigarettes. On one hand, the EU body is working to regulate and tax novel nicotine products, projecting more than 11 billion euros in annual revenue, while at the same time it is considering banning them altogether. The result is a fragmented policy approach that undermines harm reduction and discourages adult smokers from switching to less harmful alternatives.