Bye bye vapes
21 November 2024
Belgium will be the first European country to ban the sale of disposable e-cigarettes. Also known as vapes, the tool is actually designed to help people quit smoking. Counterproductively, it proved to be more of a first step to start smoking, particularly among young people for whom vaping and smoking became more popular over the last years.
The Netherlands already banned the sale of flavoured vapes, driving the Dutch to cross Belgian borders to get their vapes. That won't be happening for much longer: on 1 January 2025, the new law will be in force.
France will follow its neighbour's example and the UK is planning a similar ban in July 2025, with the Brits highlighting environmental harm too: single-use vapes are difficult to recycle and typically end up in landfills.
 | Laura Muyldermans The new laws are bad news for the main producer of e-cigarettes: the powerful tobacco industry. Belgium has been trying to initiate the ban since 2021 but needed permission from the European Commission which oversees the Tobacco Products Directive. It now seems like the nearly €20 million spent on lobbying in 2022 is not paying off for tobacco companies. |
Welcome to The European Correspondent
Europe lacks true European media: in Germany alone, there are more media devoted exclusively to football than news outlets specialising on Europe. The established players mainly focus on Brussels and European institutions. The European Correspondent aims to change that. We cover the whole of Europe and write for a community of citizens who want to look beyond their own national borders. Without European journalism, there is no European civil society.
〉Read our manifesto
〉The stories we would like to write for you
Become a donor!
The European Correspondent is fully funded by its readers. We can only produce the newsletter with your support - and work towards the bigger project: building true European media. Donate now!
With your help, we can create true European journalism. Thank you!
We are non-profit. Every donated € goes directly into The European Correspondent.