EU Commission Criticized for Lack of Transparency in Tobacco Industry Talks

On April 18th, according to a Reuters report, European regulators have preliminarily determined that the European Commission's handling of talks with the tobacco industry lacked transparency and constitutes poor management. They have demanded a response within three months.

On Tuesday, the European Ombudsman, Emily O'Reilly, revealed in an open letter that her team has conducted an investigation into the contacts between the European Commission and representatives of tobacco interests in 2020 and 2021. This followed up on an early study from 2016.

The inspector had recommended that the entire committee adopts the proactive and transparent policy of the DG Sante regarding hygiene and food safety. The letter stated that no other department except for the tax and customs departments had implemented the suggestion.

This level of transparency is required by the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, aimed at protecting current and future populations from the harmful effects of smoking.

The overseer wrote, "My preliminary opinion is that the European Commission has failed to fully fulfill its obligations stemming from the treaty, and this constitutes poor management.

After the European Parliament became embroiled in a cash-for-influence scandal, there has been increasing attention on the interactions between EU institutions and lobbying groups. Two members of the European Parliament have been charged with corruption and money laundering in Belgium.

Inspectors have discovered that there were inadequate records kept and not all meeting records with tobacco interest representatives were kept and provided. Inspectors are also questioning whether officials within the committee only interact with the tobacco industry when it is “absolutely necessary".

O'Reilly stated that she expects to receive a response within three months, which will be posted on the inspector's website.

Although the recommendations of the inspector are not legally binding, they hold strong moral authority.

Further reading:

The Latest Trend in EU Regulation: Disposable E-Cigarettes Will Face the Highest Legal Risks.

The European Union has outsourced key responsibilities for tobacco control, with three private organizations winning bids.

Legislating at the national level more effective than EU? Swedish lawmakers predict stricter and higher electronic cigarette taxes for the EU.

In 2025, there will be a major change in disposable products as the EU mandates that devices must be dismantled and recycled by users themselves.

Reference:

The European Union Commission has been criticized for its interactions with the tobacco industry.