The Tobacco Products Directive 1 ('the Directive' or ‘TPD’), applicable since May 2016, aims at facilitating the smooth functioning of the internal market, protecting people’s health, particularly the youth, and meeting the obligations of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). Under Article 28(1) of the TPD, the Commission must submit a report on the Directive’s application 2 by 20 May 2021. The report must discuss, specifically, the elements of the Directive that should be reviewed given scientific and technical developments, including internationally agreed rules and standards on tobacco and related products.

The TPD has aimed to reduce tobacco consumption by 2% within five years of its transposition 3 . Based on the latest Eurobarometer 4 , smoking prevalence among those aged 15+ fell from 26% in 2014 to 23% in 2020 – a drop 5 of 3 percentage points since the TPD came into force, equivalent to 12.5%. Youth smoking rates fell to 20% in 2020 from 25% in 2014, after peaking at 29% in 2017. However, the uptake of emerging products, especially e-cigarettes, is growing among young people 6 . This is worrying given the aim to protect the youth. 

Significant developments since the Directive came into force have given new urgency and impetus to tobacco control work. At international level, the Sustainable Development Agenda called on all countries to implement the FCTC more robustly. At EU level, the 2021 Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan places tobacco control at the spotlight of disease prevention efforts to help achieve a tobacco-free Europe by 2040. The intermediate objective is to reach the WHO target of a 30% relative reduction in tobacco use by 2025 as compared to 2010 7 , translating into an EU smoking prevalence rate of around 20% by 2025 compared to 29% in 2010. To meet these ambitions, tobacco control efforts must be stepped up, including strengthening rules on tobacco products.