Nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of the population in the European Union smoke, according to a new survey ordered by the European Commission.
It represents only a one-point decrease in smokers compared to the results of 2020, with disparities noted among the countries surveyed by the Eurobarometer.
Over 35 per cent of people in Bulgaria, Greece, and Croatia are smokers compared to less than 10 per cent in Sweden.
Boxed cigarettes are still the most popular choice with around seven in ten smoking them on a daily basis.
The average consumption also remains the same compared to 2020 figures with around 14 cigarettes being smoked per day.
Electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, are used by 3 per cent of the respondents, especially among people between 15 and 39.
One in three took up using e-cigarettes because their friends did, while 36 per cent chose vaping to stop or reduce their tobacco consumption.
“The Eurobarometer underlines the need to act. It shows that people support additional tobacco control measures rather than linking them to the image of a ‘nanny-state’ as some lobbies like to suggest,” Frank Vandenbroucke, said the Belgian Health minister said in a statement released by the European coalition Smoke Free Partnership.
Push for stronger tobacco regulations
The EU aimed to achieve a “tobacco-free generation” where less than 5 per cent of the population uses tobacco by 2040 - compared to the current 24 per cent from the last survey, as part of Europe's Beating Cancer Plan.
“I sincerely hope that the next commission will quickly pick up the delayed work on the revision of the tobacco directives,” Vandenbroucke added.
The latest version of this European directive dates back to 2014 though it has received several amendments to catch up with the market’s developments.
Its revision was initially expected in December 2022 but has been postponed indefinitely.
“The Commission has to immediately restart the revision of three directives - Tobacco Tax, Tobacco Products, and Advertising Directives - because tobacco consumption continues to be the leading cause of preventable cancer,” Lilia Olefir, Smoke Free’s partnership director said.
Tobacco is responsible for 700,000 deaths each year and is the largest avoidable health risk in the EU.
Certain measures like “increasing minimum tax rates on cigarettes, roll-your-own and new tobacco and nicotine products, mandatory plain packaging, prohibiting cross-border online sales, protecting teenagers from digital advertising of addictive products” are already in place in several member states, Olefir noted.
But she calls for harmonised EU regulations on the topic and more pushback against the tobacco lobby, especially when it comes to the European youth.
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