World Vapers’ Alliance presents a 7-step plan for Portugal to combat cigarette consumption

LISBON, PORTUGAL, 10 November  — A global advocacy group for vapers’ rights, World Vapers’ Alliance (WVA), presented a plan en 7 étapes for the Portuguese government to fight tobacco consumption.

As the forthcoming update of the EU Tobacco Products Directive and the implementation of the Portuguese Plan to reduce cancer (ENLCC) are set to determine the strategy to combat tobacco consumption in Portugal, WVA, together with their Portuguese partners Associação Portuguesa de Vaporizadores (APORVAP) and Ohms do Vapor presented a set of recommendations to political decision-makers on advancing harm reduction as a part of Portugal’s strategy to reduce cancer. 

The 7-step plan includes the following recommendations:

1. Portugal’s clear commitment to the concept of tobacco harm reduction.
2. Promouvoir le vapotage comme outil de sevrage tabagique.
3. Exclure le vapotage des restrictions relatives aux zones sans fumée.
4. Abstenez-vous d'imposer des taxes plus élevées sur les produits de vapotage et réduisez dès que possible la taxation excessive des e-liquides.
5. Rejeter les interdictions de saveurs et ne pas restreindre le choix des niveaux de nicotine dans les liquides à vapoter.
6. Maintenir la possibilité de vapoter pour les adultes tout en appliquant des restrictions d'âge afin d'empêcher son utilisation par les adolescents.
7. Promouvoir la réduction des méfaits du tabac au sein des institutions et des législations de l'UE.

“Smoking is responsible for over 13,000 deaths in Portugal every year. Multiple ways have been effective in helping smokers quit, and vaping has proven to be the most successful tool so far. We need a modern, open regulatory framework to fit these alternatives to reduce cancer rates successfully. While the Portuguese government is designing the ENLCC strategy, we offer 7 comprehensive steps for the government to succeed in the fight against tobacco-induced cancer. Portugal can become a global tobacco harm reduction leader by implementing consumer-friendly vaping regulation,” a déclaré Michael Landl, directeur de l'Alliance mondiale des vapoteurs.

“Today, Portugal has the highest excise tax on e-liquids in Europe, which adds up to EUR 3.23 per 10ml liquid, and the government intends to increase this rate in 2023. Such taxation rules discourage consumers from purchasing e-liquids and, therefore, switch to less harmful alternatives than traditional smoking. Portugal needs a modern, risk-based tax regulation that will remove the burden from consumers and support Portuguese public health goals,” said Cristiano Batista, president of APORVAP.

«Unfortunately, we see a lot of misconceptions about vaping and e-cigarettes among the media, policymakers, and health professionals. At Ohms do Vapor, we provide reliable information to the public about tobacco alternatives, but it is not enough. Portugal needs a country-wide educational campaign on the benefits of tobacco harm reduction if the government wants to achieve their set goals. The 7-step plan developed by WVA supports public awareness needs and should be taken into account by the government,” said Ohms do Vapor.

The 7-step plan reducing smoking rates in Portugal is a part of World Vapers’ Alliance’s Europe-wide campaign on harm reduction, #BackVapingBeatSmoking, previously launched in France, Poland, Czech Republic, and Italy. WVA is running a pétition among the consumers to support harm reduction strategy in the upcoming review of the Tobacco Products Directive, which will be delivered to the Members of the European Parliament at the end of November. 

Learn more about the Back Vaping Beat Smoking campaign ici.