Addiction experts are attacking the European Commission for a report on its tobacco control efforts which says novel nicotine products, such as vaping, are “pulling a new generation into addiction”.
Vaping and other new tobacco products “pose a particular threat to younger generations, who are at risk of nicotine addiction and long-term health consequences”, the Commission claims.
Part of the danger of vaping lies in “the attractive features and assertive online promotion of these products,” says the report.
The Commission said that novel products “may act as a gateway to nicotine addictions”.
Experts and the industry itself, who see these novel products as less harmful alternative to smoking, have pushed back.
It is “now certain that smoke-free products support heavy smokers who are unable to quit. The evidence is consistent and has been confirmed over time,” said Dr Fabio Beatrice, scientific director of the observatory for Harm Reduction in Medicine (MOHRE).
“The latest Cochrane review, published just a few months ago, examined over 30,000 participants and the findings of 104 studies—61 of which were randomised controlled trials—and confirms with a high degree of certainty the effectiveness of e-cigarettes in helping smokers who struggle to quit,” he added.
MOHRE was highly critical for the Commission’s report and accused the Commission of ignoring the science.
“The Commission had committed to basing its decisions on solid scientific evidence, yet its own Evaluation Report on the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD)… appears to have been drafted while systematically ignoring that science”, it said.
In Sweden, the research centre said, smoke-free alternatives have been available for decades and the daily smoking rate hovers at around five per cent, nearly a fifth of the European average.
“The health outcomes are measurable and unequivocal—39.6 per cent fewer deaths from tobacco-related diseases and 41 per cent fewer cancer cases compared to the EU average. This difference is so marked that, in December 2024, the Swedish Parliament formally included tobacco harm reduction among the principles of its national health policy,” said the observatory.
Dr Beatrice harshly attacked the Commission report’s methodology.
The Commission report covers just ten of the twenty-seven member states, relies primarily on data from before 2017, and draws only 26 per cent of its literature from European contexts, without conducting any substantive analysis of the outcomes of harm reduction, he says..
“Such a fragile framework is not up to the task of supporting the decisions it will be called upon to underpin”, concludes Dr Beatrice.
“It is highly regrettable that Europe continues to ignore research published in the most authoritative international journals,” he said.
The Commission’s report, which appeared just ahead of the Easter weekend, praised the EU’s own tobacco control framework, as the cause of recent progress in stemming smoking across the EU.
In the press release, the Commission argued that EU rules on tobacco control contributed to a significant decline in smoking and tobacco-related deaths across the EU.
Since 2012, smoking rates in the EU fell from 28 per cent to 24 per cent of the population, with a higher decline among young people, it said.
“Tobacco-related deaths have also decreased substantially, reflecting the positive impact of stricter rules on product regulation, advertising bans and health warnings”, the Commission stated.
“The evaluation also confirms that harmonised EU rules have improved the functioning of the internal market,” it added.
The report also opened the door for new changes, particularly regarding vaping and other novel products.
“Without urgent action, a smoke-free generation by 2040 will remain out of reach. The Commission will overhaul the legislative framework this year,” said Olivér Várhelyi, European Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare.
“Europe’s tobacco rules have cut smoking and saved lives. But the market is changing fast. Novel tobacco and nicotine products are pulling a new generation into addiction, especially through appealing designs and covert online marketing”, Várhelyi added.
However, Professor Konstantinos Farsalinos, a leading European expert on addiction and harm reduction and a member of the MOHRE board, argued “Imposing excessive bans or restrictions on these products could have the opposite effect of what is desired: Encouraging illegal trafficking and pushing consumers toward even more harmful choices.”
A case in point is Denmark, said Professor Farsalinos.
There, a 2022 ban on e-cigarette flavours produced results opposite to those expected, leading to increased consumption among young people and a predominant use of flavours that were supposed to be banned.
Such restrictions and bans “also discourage smokers from switching to lower-risk products and could force former smokers to return to traditional cigarettes”, said Farsalinos.
The European Economic and Social Committee has cautioned that abrupt or excessive increases in excise duties on tobacco and nicotine products could drive consumers towards illicit markets, erode fiscal revenues, and weaken the EU’s public health objectives.…
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) February 24, 2026
In a rebuttal, the World Vapers Alliance said Brussels was “celebrating” the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) for reducing smoking, even as the EU risks missing its 2040 smoke-free target by decades.
It warned the Commission’s report paves the way for stricter rules or bans on alternative products, despite several EU countries having cut smoking rates through these alternatives.
Considerate Pouchers, an advocacy group for alternatives to smoking, also condemned the report as “dangerously narrow-minded,” arguing it overlooks the public health potential of nicotine pouches and ignores Sweden’s success in achieving Europe’s lowest smoking rates.
The group said the evaluation exaggerates risks while downplaying the significantly lower harm of nicotine pouches compared to cigarettes, framing pouches as a threat rather than a solution.
“This report is a masterclass in cognitive dissonance,” said the group’s spokesperson Juan Rafael Taborcía. “It admits the EU is failing its smoking targets, yet attacks the most effective tools to help people quit.”
Philip Morris International (PMI), a big tobacco international making the switch from smoking to novel products, stressed the need for “inclusive, evidence-based approaches”.
Its counterpart, British American Tobacco (BAT) stressed the EU tobacco law evaluation “jeopardises the 2024 smoke-free goal by side lining crucial evidence”.
BAT accused the Commission of a “biased evaluation process”, warned that bans and restrictions don’t eliminate demand but push consumers to the illegal market, where there are no age of safety checks.
It said the report proved “the Commission is not serious about science” because it calls vaping a gateway to smoking, while there is strong evidence proving vaping is a means to quit smoking and causes less harm.
“This evaluation was an opportunity to take an honest, evidence-based look at what is working and what is falling short in EU tobacco regulation. Despite taking more than three years, this opportunity has been completely missed,” said Nathalie Darge, Secretary General of Tobacco Europe.
A coalition of 23 leading European experts in medicine, toxicology, epidemiology and addiction science has accused European Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare Olivér Várhelyi of disseminating “false and misleading” information about the risks posed by smoke-free nicotine…
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) March 6, 2026
