Tobacco control

As concerns over public health continue to mount, Parliament is deliberating on proposed amendments to the Health Act aimed at cracking down on indoor smoking, encompassing all smoking products, including non-tobacco alternatives and hookahs.

Police in the northern port city of Thessaloniki have arrested three men suspected of running a large-scale tobacco racket after seizing thousands of packets of contraband cigarettes.

Slim cigarettes are no longer available in Slovenian stores after health inspectors found the packaging was not in line with the relevant EU directive. Smokers are upset and confused, writes the newspaper Delo.

The directive states that the health warning labels must be at least twenty millimetres wide, which is a requirement that slim cigarette packs did not meet.

By treating heated tobacco products the same as regular cigarettes, the Health Ministry is attempting to make them "unattractive."

The Health Ministry has drawn up changes to tobacco legislation to further restrict access to tobacco and nicotine products, a move welcomed by public health experts.

Italy may soon ban smoking outdoors as well, reports "RAI News", "Sky TG 24" and "TG Com 24", quoted by BTA.

The draft legal act, which will contain the ban, is being prepared by the Ministry of Health. The ban will affect not only ordinary but also electronic cigarettes and so-called heated tobacco products.

Changes are being made to the smoking law in an attempt to close loopholes in anti-smoking legislation that allow essentially closed spaces to be called outdoors.

According to information, the Ministry of Health will attempt in the first quarter of 2023 to proceed with changes in cooperation with the relevant ministries.

Over the next three months the Health Ministry will seek to close the loopholes in the anti-smoking legislation that allow closed areas to be characterized as open-air, thus allowing people to smoke.

More specifically, the smoking of cigarettes will be expressly banned in cafes, bars, restaurants etc that are closed with canopies, plastic sheeting and other protective barriers.

Greece's anti-smoking law is heavy in symbolism. The law, which banned smoking in indoor public places and introduced stiff fines, was introduced several times before being finally implemented in practice.

Montenegrin Customs officers seize tobacco in the Port of Bar. Photo: Government of Montenegro

The Customs Office said it seized eight containers with 4,000 boxes of tobacco owned by a US company, Lenora International, registered in the US state of Delaware.