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France decided in February to ban nicotine pouches. Eight months later – and amid a desperate hunt for cash to fill budget gaps – centrist politicians now want them back, hoping the highly addictive products will generate around €200 million through taxes in the coming years.
Selective protection of public health is a risky game. Nicotine pouches can’t have become safer overnight. Together with the Netherlands, France has led EU efforts to raise tobacco taxes, while Belgium has gone further – accusing some member states in closed-door diplomats’ meetings of echoing industry talking points.
Don’t look for France to be as rigid on the question of an alcohol tax, which hasn’t been revised since 1992. Since then, evidence proving the detrimental effects of alcohol on health has only grown – even if wine producers celebrate the alleged benefits of their beverages.
The World Health Organization now says there is no safe level of alcohol consumption, which in a world without double standards would compel France to also back higher EU taxes on wine, and Belgium and the Netherlands for beer.
This won’t happen, of course, because economic interests take priority. And when cash drives health policy, integrity dies first.
Roundup
China’s climate responsibility – The EU Climate Commissioner told Euractiv on Tuesday that China must contribute much more to global climate finance, given the heft of its economy. He said that developing countries are pushing for €1.3 trillion in support for dealing with climate-related issues, but noted that “Europe just simply doesn’t have the pockets to do that by itself.”
Doubling down on the Ukraine loan – The Commission isn’t giving up on the plan to assign €140 billion of frozen Russian assets to Ukraine, despite steadfast opposition from Belgium, where the funds are held. Other member countries backed the current plan, with Danish PM Mette saying there is “no alternative”.
Cigarette filter disputes – A proposed ban on cigarette filters has received a mixed reception among EU members, with some doubtful and others confused. Banning filters could make cigarettes less enjoyable for habitual smokers, but eliminating them entirely could expose smokers to even higher levels of toxins And it would have to sustain attacks from the powerful tobacco industry.
Across Europe
Gay rights comment throws Dutch election campaign – Surprise momentum behind Henri Botenbal, an outside candidate for tomorrow’s Dutch parliamentary election, has been stalled after comments made on television about gay pupils attending publicly-funded Christian schools.
Parliament paid thousands to convicted neo-Nazi MEP – A senior figure of Greece’s Golden Dawn party, which was convicted for illegal possession of weapons and the fatal stabbing of a left-wing rapper (among other assaults), continued to enjoy immunity privileges and received at least €30,000 in benefits from the Parliament via legal loopholes.
Finland blocks property deals over security concerns – The Finnish Defence Ministry blocked 11 real-estate purchases from non-EU nationals – some of them Russian – saying the authorisations were strategically insensitive. The properties are located along key corridors near the Baltic Sea shipping lanes.
