A Behavioural and Health Economics Perspective on Smoking

Reducing tobacco smoking is a global public health objective. The success of curbing smoking via public health and fiscal policies is ambivalent. In recent years, conventional tobacco control measures have been complemented in some jurisdictions by harm reduction policies. The objective of harm reduction policies is to induce switching from highly harmful combusted tobacco products to less harmful non-combusted alternatives (NCAs). We review the literary strand of harm reduction in general, tobacco harm reduction in particular and the enthusiastic supporters’ side to highlight their point of view in the scientific and policy debate. The Council Directive 2011/64/EU on the structure and rates of excise duty applied to manufactured tobacco (TTD) is currently under review, which reraises the question of how to proceed with the ‘blind spot’ tobacco. Against this background, two main challenges arise for the revision of the TTD: first, tackling the lack of integration of NCAs into the current legal framework. Second, improving the alignment of the tax policy outlined in the TTD with the main public health objective to curb smoking. We conclude, taking harm reduction seriously – NCAs should be treated differently than traditional combusted tobacco products (CCs)