The Ministry of Health has completed an ambitious comprehensive plan against smoking that introduces, among other issues, the prohibition of smoking in particular vehicles, the generic packaging of tobacco brands and seeks to equate by law restrictions on electronic cigarettes.

The government is aware of the delay it leads in its commitments in the fight against tobacco, largely because it has had to focus on combating the Covid pandemic, but now it has decided to approve a plan with five goals and 21 objectives that will be recovering
The time lost in the next four years.

For this reason he has tightened the accelerator and has just sent the draft of his “comprehensive prevention and control plan of smoking 2021-2025” to scientific and medical societies, and also to the autonomous communities, so that before the day 15 of
This month present its contributions.

In its 119 pages, the Ministry who runs Carolina Darias recalls in this plan that has elapsed more than a decade since the last “substantial” modification occurred in sanitary measures against smoking and, from the hand of the standards that marks the
European Union and WHO, now ambitiona to achieve a “free generation of tobacco” in Spain.

For this and “before the year 2023” it will be proposed to increase smoke-free spaces – it also includes electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products – “especially in exterior spaces”, an implicit reference to the terraces of bars and restaurants already
The vicinity of public buildings, signal sanitary sources.

Also in the short term and “to be implemented in two years”, the Ministry of Health wants to modify Law 28/2005 and Royal Decree 579/2017, thus adapting all the regulations against smoking “to the changes produced in the market with the
Appearance of new products and achieving an advance in the regulation of smokeless spaces. ”

These spaces without smoke and “no sprays of electronic cigarettes” also contemplate “certain spaces of the private scope”, such as “private vehicles”.

As a basic line of action, from the General Directorate of Public Health, it has also been incorporated into the plan “Complying, promotion and sponsorship of related products and new products to the existing for tobacco products,” as well as a better regulation of
The sale and consumption of products related to tobacco, whether “with or without nicotine”.

In addition, you want to tackle the increasing covert advertising and promotions in social networks and platforms of all these new products.

Likewise, health is raised via real decree to follow the wake from other countries such as France or Australia and implement the generic packaging of tobacco cassettes, in such a way that the attractiveness of the marks is removed and helping the decline in cigarette consumption, such
As recommended by medical-scientific societies.
He also wants to prohibit additives that give aroma in tobacco and related products.

The Ministry of Daries also have as a line of action “promote the revision of the taxation to achieve an increase and approximation of the price of all tobacco products and the heating devices used for their consumption”, as well as “promote that is graven
Electronic cigarettes with special taxes “.

According to this plan, “Spain arises to reach the goal established by the WHO of a 30% reduction in tobacco consumption for 2025” compared to the 2010 data and to achieve it also wants to raise the taxation of new products
of tobacco

One of the novelties regarding other tobacco plans is that this draft openly includes the need to seek “alternatives to tobacco cultivation” in Spain and environmental considerations regarding waste disposal, such as expanding the ban on smoking on beaches, which
It helps the removal of waste – butts – which seriously affect the marine ecosystem.

The ultimate goal is that with all this a reduction of one third of premature mortality due to noncommunicable diseases in 2030 is achieved and follow the European recommendation to lower daily smoking rate by 5% by 2040, two more points among young people of
14 to 18 years old.

The Ministry of Health wants all these objectives that seek to save Vidas be shared by all parties and, thus, “establishing a national agreement on the prevention of smoking with support from parliamentary groups.”