Tobacco Advertising Ban Approved

IRIS 1998-3:1/23

Marina Benassi

Attorney at law

On 12 February the Council of the European Union reached an agreement on the phased reduction of tobacco advertising over the next eight years. The agreement, on the directive aiming at a tobacco advertising ban is due to come into force during 1999, after approval by the European Parliament.

The agreed text foresees in the phasing-out of the most part of direct tobacco advertising in three to four years from the approval, while indirect advertising (i.e. by way of sponsorship/merchandising of other products, and/or events) is due to be eliminated within a period of six years and anyway before October 2006. Exempted from the ban are magazines from outside the European Union and publications aimed at the tobacco-industry itself.

The agreement has been strongly criticized by the Confederation of European Community Cigarette Manufacturers (CECCM) which announced its intention to challenge the legal basis of the directive. A political agreement on this subject had already been agreed upon on in December of last year.