EU-wide ban on tobacco ads imminent

Date: 07/07/05

An EU-wide ban on tobacco advertising is just weeks away. EU member states have until 31 July to outlaw cigarette ads in the press, on the radio and on the internet. Transpositions are "pouring in" as governments hurry to put the new rules on their statute books, a Commission official said.

The Commission could not confirm how many member states had already transferred the legislation, saying it would assess the full picture at the end of July. If legislation is on its way, the Commission is unlikely to launch infringement procedures.

The main aim of the law was to harmonise a variety of different national rules forbidding tobacco advertising or sponsorship of events which attract an international audience. Governments are free to draft stricter rules if they think that would protect public health.

Germany, which has traditionally been hostile to an advertising ban, announced plans in May which would only allow tobacco firms to advertise on billboards and at evening cinema showings. Renate Künast, the German consumer minister, said the country's parliament should adopt the law by the end of July.

Germany's challenge to the Commission's first tobacco advertising ban prompted the European Court of Justice to overturn the law in 2003, forcing the Commission to draft a new proposal. Germany has now lodged an appeal against the new directive and is waiting for a court decision.

Anticipation of the entry into force of an EU-wide ban on tobacco advertising from 1 August 2005 and the challenge brought forward by Germany against the directive.