"The objective is very clear: to stop young people from starting to smoke by ceasing to offer them access to the product," explains to AFP the MP for the 2nd constituency of Gironde, who wants "to definitively stop the smoking epidemic" thanks to a "A generational and progressive ban." In short, from January 1, 2032, it would be illegal to sell tobacco to anyone born after January 1, 2014, even if of legal age, a measure welcomed in particular by the League Against Cancer and the Alliance Against Tobacco (ACT).
In France, tobacco remains the leading cause of preventable death
The ban would apply to all tobacco products, including heated tobacco, "the new battleground for cigarette manufacturers," rejoices the ACT. "Faced with the ingenuity of the tobacco industry, which tries to minimize the danger, only drastic measures will make it possible to protect future generations," argues Philippe Bergerot, president of the League Against Cancer.
In France, tobacco remains the leading cause of preventable death: it kills 75,000 people per year with an overall "social cost" (deaths, illnesses, production losses, prevention, repression and care expenses, for the State) estimated at 156 billion euros by the French Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction.
After a decline between 2014 and 2019, the latest available data "tend to show a recent stabilization" the prevalence of smoking "since 2020", describes the statement of reasons.
Smoking rates have started to decline again since then, according to the latest survey by Public Health France: one in four people aged 18 to 75 smoked tobacco in 2024, compared to nearly one in three in 2021, the first results of its barometer showed in mid-October. "Anti-smoking policies are working rather well: smoke-free areas, plain packaging, price increases (...) imagining that the battle is won is an illusion."the MP points out.
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Objective: First tobacco-free generation by 2032
This bill also responds to the objective of achieving the first tobacco-free generation by 2032, that is to say, reaching less than 5% of smoking prevalence in adulthood for generations born from 2014 onwards.
“On several occasions, public authorities have stated such an objective – the Minister of Health in 2014 or the President of the Republic in 2021 – and the 2032 horizon now appears in the latest National Tobacco Control Program (2023-2027).”the text reminds us.
This French anti-smoking plan is part of the European Union's objective of achieving a tobacco-free generation with less than 51% of the EU population consuming tobacco products by 2040. For the time being, this cross-party bill is supported by around twenty MPs from seven different groups ranging from LFI to Horizons, explains Nicolas Thierry.
Green Party MP Nicolas Thierry from Gironde on April 4, 2024 at the National Assembly (AFP/Archives – EMMANUEL DUNAND)
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"An economic model based solely on a health crisis"
The MP also hopes that the government will support his proposal, which could be put on the agenda during the next slot when the Assembly debates cross-party bills.
Anticipating criticism from tobacco advocates who might argue that this measure risks causing the black market to explode or putting tobacconists out of business, Nicolas Thierry emphasizes that the gradual implementation of the measure will "Decrease demand very slowly, without a tipping point."
"We must also acknowledge that it is unacceptable to perpetuate an economic model based solely on a health crisis."he said, also pointing to its ecological and social impact, tobacco cultivation contributing to "approximately 51.3 tons of global deforestation" while more than 1.3 million children still work in tobacco fields around the world.
A similar initiative has been launched in the United Kingdom, where a total and definitive ban on the sale of cigarettes to people born after 2009 is being discussed in Parliament.
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