Exclusive: EU wants to ban smoking and vaping in outdoor areas, leaked draft says

The European Commission will propose extending existing smoking bans to outdoor areas, including innovative products that don’t contain nicotine, according to a leaked draft seen by Euronews. 

The plans, set to be adopted by the EU executive on Tuesday, would expand current 2009 guidelines intended to cut exposure to second-hand smoke in public places, workplaces, and public transport. 

The latest version of the draft – seen by Euronews and still subject to change – seeks to clear public spaces of all aerosols, not just cigarette smoke, reflecting growing concerns over the health risks posed by new tobacco products such as vapes. 

The guidelines aren’t legally binding, but provide a framework for member states to follow as part of wider efforts to curb tobacco-related cancer. The Commission claims the first few years of implementation in 2009-2012 already saw a drop in exposure.

Targeting new tobacco products

The Commission's new recommendations aim to tackle a broader range of emerging products, including “heated tobacco products and electronic cigarettes, whether containing nicotine or nicotine-free.” 

Likewise, the Commission wants to include “tobacco surrogates and any other smoke and/or aerosol emitting products” too, the leaked document shows. 

These products, often marketed as safer alternatives to traditional smoking, still expose bystanders to harmful chemicals through second-hand aerosols, the document says. “The evidence on the use of emerging products as a cessation aid is inconclusive,” the document says. 

The crackdown comes amid growing evidence that second-hand exposure to “aerosols from electronic cigarettes, both with and without nicotine, expose bystanders to quantifiable levels of particulate matter and key toxicants and contaminants,” the draft said. 

New smoking ban areas

A key feature of the proposal is the extension of smoking bans to various outdoor spaces, which has so far been regulated case-by-case in individual member states.  

“The level of coverage of smoke-free rules varies greatly based on the type of smoke-free environments, and the general level of coverage of outdoor spaces in smoke-free policies is low,” the Commission said to justify the need for broader protections in public spaces. 

Under the new guidelines, outdoor or semi-outdoor areas—defined as partially covered or enclosed spaces like rooftops, balconies, porches, and patios—associated with service establishments such as restaurants, bars, and cafes should become smoke-free zones. 

Public transport hubs including bus stops and airports would also be covered, and smoking would also be banned in outdoor areas linked to workplaces, hospitals and nursing homes. 

Recreational areas where children are present, including public playgrounds, amusement parks, swimming pools, and zoos, are also included, as are educational premises from pre-school childcare to university.

Tobacco lobby

The Commission’s proposal, originally planned for January, has been delayed, raising concerns about the EU’s commitment to its anti-tobacco agenda.  

A linked reform to the EU’s Tobacco Taxation Directive has now also been pushed to 2025, and some have questioned whether the tobacco industry influenced those decisions. 

In a December 2023 report, the EU Ombudsman criticised the Commission for failing to disclose meetings with tobacco industry lobbyists.  

Despite these setbacks, outgoing Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides appears set to update the Council recommendations tomorrow, just weeks before the end of the Commission term.

"Tobacco use, nicotine addiction and tobacco-induced illness should have no place in Europe's future," Kyriakides said in a statement on the occasion of the World No Tobacco Day.

The revised guidelines are part of the Commission’s larger Beating Cancer Plan, which aims to achieve a "tobacco-free generation" by 2040, to cut tobacco use by 30% by 2025, and to see the share of the EU population smoking cut to just 5%.