Poland wants to ban both disposable vejps and virtually all flavoured nicotine pouches. The government's draft law has now been sent to the European Commission - and is facing fierce criticism from both consumer organisations and the vejp industry.
- Prohibition does not work in practice. It creates a black market and protects cigarette sales, critics warn.
The Polish government has now notified its proposal for new rules on smokeless nicotine products through the EU's TRIS system. The proposal includes a total ban on disposable e-cigarettes, a ban on flavoured nicotine pouches (with the exception of artificial tobacco flavours), stricter rules for future nicotine products and overall tighter control of the e-cigarette market.
Would be hardest in Europe so far
If the law is approved by the European Commission, Poland would become one of the most restrictive countries in the EU when it comes to alternative nicotine products.
The Polish government justifies the proposal by wanting to reduce the use of nicotine products by young people and restrict products that are considered particularly attractive to minors.
At the same time, critics argue that the bans will mainly affect products that compete directly with cigarettes in kiosks and convenience stores - while traditional cigarettes will remain legal.
“Risks strengthening the cigarette market”
Critics of the proposal include the organisation Prohibition Does Not Work and the market liberal think tank Warsaw Enterprise Institute.
- "This policy risks being counterproductive to public health, as restrictions on less harmful nicotine alternatives may reinforce the use of regular cigarettes," said Sebastian Stodolak, vice-president of the Warsaw Enterprise Institute, in a comment.
He refers to research on harm reduction and says that products such as e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches serve as alternatives to smoking for many users.
- The research shows quite clearly that nicotine pouches and e-cigarettes can replace cigarettes, which still account for the vast majority of smoking-related diseases. Removing the alternatives does not remove the demand for nicotine - many users just go back to the most harmful form of consumption," he says.
Mr Stodolak also argues that the proposal goes beyond what is reasonable from a freedom perspective.
- The proposal limits the ability of adults to choose less harmful products and replaces individual choice with paternalistic regulation. This goes against the basic principle that people should be able to make their own decisions about risks to their own bodies.
“More people will smoke or shop in the dark”
The organisation's spokesperson Tim Andrews also warns about the consequences of a ban on flavours and disposables.
- "If Poland makes less harmful nicotine products than cigarettes more difficult to obtain, the result will be quite predictable: more people will continue to smoke and a huge black market will emerge for those seeking alternatives to smoking," he says.
He says the same pattern is repeated every time governments try to ban alternative nicotine products.
- "Every time politicians try to ban safer alternatives, they end up protecting the cigarette market instead," says Mr Andrews.
Flavours are key to quitting smoking
According to an opinion poll commissioned by the organisation, 88% of Polish nicotine pouch users say that the flavours were an important reason for quitting smoking cigarettes.
The study also shows that a flavour ban would likely have different consequences than those hoped for by politicians:
”A third say they would try to buy the products online or from other countries. About the same number say they would risk going back to cigarettes and only six per cent say they would stop using nicotine altogether,” Prohibition does not work states in its report.
- When governments ban less harmful nicotine products, people don't magically stop using nicotine. They go back to cigarettes - or find the products elsewhere, says Tim Andrews.
Pointing to Germany and Sweden
Critics also point to developments in other EU countries.
According to Prohibition Does Not Work, attempts to stop nicotine pouches in Germany have instead led to a growing black market. The organisation estimates that over 1.4 million Germans use products sold outside the regulated system.
At the same time, Sweden is highlighted as an example of the opposite.
- Sweden now has the lowest smoking rates in Europe after smokeless nicotine products were allowed to compete with cigarettes. Poland risks going in the opposite direction, says Tim Andrews.
He argues that Polish politicians should focus on regulation based on relative risk, rather than outright bans.
- Instead of repeating the failures of other countries, Poland should accept the growing body of research on harm reduction and introduce proportionate rules to help smokers quit. Millions of lives could be affected by these decisions," he says.
Poland has already tightened the rules
Poland has already banned the online sale of e-cigarettes and tightened rules on nicotine products. Just a few months ago, it introduced age limits, which Vejpkollen reported on. The new proposal is seen by many as another step towards a much more restrictive nicotine policy.
At the same time, the the conflict within the EU over how to handle alternative nicotine products. While countries like Sweden emphasise more on harm reduction and smoke-free alternatives, several Member States are taking a much tougher line, focusing on bans and flavour restrictions.
The European Commission is scrutinising the proposal
The matter is now before the European Commission.
Through the TRIS process, the Commission and the other Member States will assess whether the Polish law risks violating the principles of the EU internal market, creating disproportionate barriers to trade, or going beyond what is necessary to achieve public health objectives.
Historically, the European Commission has often given Member States a lot of leeway when justifying rules on public health grounds. But at the same time, similar proposals in the past have led to objections from both member states and industry.
For Swedish users and companies, developments in Poland can therefore be important far beyond the country's borders.
Many already see the proposal as a possible foretaste of the conflicts to come when the EU later renegotiates both the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) and the Taxation Directive (TED).
