In this blog, Olivia O’Brien, discusses a new law banning the sale of menthol tobacco products across Ireland and Northern Ireland.

With a lot of focus on the response to Covid-19, the ban on the sale of menthol tobacco products from the end of May might have gone unnoticed. But it is an important milestone to recognise in our efforts to reduce tobacco consumption in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

The legislation means that cigarettes and rolling tobacco in Ireland and Northern Ireland are no longer allowed to contain menthol flavouring. This is in accordance with the EU Tobacco Products Directive, the same directive that paved the way for ‘plain’ packaging in 2016, a ban on 10-pack cigarettes and better regulation of tobacco advertising.....