Efforts to Protect Policy from Tobacco Industry Interference Have Deteriorated in 43 Countries, According to Civil Society Groups

 

Governments around the world continue to be influenced by powerful tobacco companies that hinder effortsto reduce tobacco use. They are not taking sufficient measures to protect policy from the tobacco industry as required under Article 5.3 of a global treaty, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC).

A new report from STOP and the Global Center for Good Governance in Tobacco Control (GGTC), The Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index 2023, reveals a worsening trend.

Analysis from civil society organizations shows a deterioration in the scores for more than half (43) of the 80 countries analyzed in the 2021 report, while 29 improved their score. No country was immune to the industry’s intensified efforts to sway policy and policymakers to its advantage, with tactics including aggressive lobbying to create acceptance for electronic products and significant efforts to hide environmental damage caused by both cigarettes and electronic products. Key findings include: Brunei Darussalam, New Zealand, France, the Netherlands and Botswana ranked best overall, The worst-scoring countries were the Dominican Republic, Switzerland, Japan and Indonesia—allcountries in which the industry has a significant presence,The most improved scores were recorded by Ukraine, Botswana, Burkina Faso and Ethiopia. As the industry increasingly targets African consumers, progress in protecting policy across the continent is particularly urgent, Within each region, there are significant differences in scores between the best- and worst-performing governments, Countries that have not ratified the WHO FCTC, including Argentina and the U.S.A., face high levels of industry meddling.

 “The tobacco industry is aggressive in sabotaging government efforts to strengthen tobacco control,” said Mary Assunta, PhD, Head of Global Research and Advocacy for the Global Center for Good Governance in Tobacco Control, a partner in the STOP network and lead author of the Index. “This report confirms that there is no room for complacency; the key to arresting industry interference lies in the hands of governments. They must use Article 5.3 which will empower them to do their utmost to stop the 8 million preventable tobacco-related deaths every year.”

Key trends include the industry aggressively seeking to create favorable conditions fornew addictive products such as e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products (HTPs) and nicotine pouches: Tobacco companies successfully lobbied for the end of bans on e-cigarettes, HTPs and/or nicotine pouches in Egypt, Kenya and Uruguay. In Uruguay, the Ministry of Public Health used industry-friendly information provided by Philip Morris International (PMI) instead of information prepared by its own experts.

Amid growing alarm at e-cigarettewaste and calls for cigarette filters to be banned as toxic, single-use plastics, the industry stepped up activities to hide its environmental harms: In at least 15countries including Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Korea, Malaysia, Sweden, Switzerland and Uruguay, industry-led cigarette butt litter clean ups secured the endorsement of governments and public institutions.