The first European congress of French speaking countries held on November 20 leaded to a sharp controversy between France and Luxembourg. The two-day Congress was held in Nancy (France) and gathered a number of experts coming from France, Switzerland, Belgium and Luxembourg. During the meeting, a bitter debate ensued between France and Luxembourg when Yves Martinet, the president of the French national committee against tabagism, defined Luxembourg as a tobacco dealer and said, “I can find no other words to describe the behaviour of this country, which is in contrast with the health policies adopted in France”.
The French lung specialist is not the only one who thinks so. Many others, indeed, accuse the Grand Duchy of legal inconsistency. Director of the Luxembourg Foundation against Cancer Marie-Paule Prost-Heinisch, indeed, repeatedly criticizes her Government and accuses it of making Luxembourg the heaven of smokers and an exporting cancer country. Prost-Heinisch’s words are very strong, but they are supported by a scrupulous analysis of the current legislation considered by many as inappropriate. In Luxembourg, indeed, the price of cigarettes is among the lowest in Europe and one of the least restrictive laws on smoking is in force.
The law adopted on August 11, 2006 does not impose the ban of smoking on any public space and restrictions concern only some business premises at specified times. Thus, people cannot smoke in restaurants and cake shops, but they are allowed to smoke in pubs and cafés only out of feeding time. Therefore, you can light a fag in a pub at 6:59 p.m. but you have to put it out within 7:00 p.m. if you do not want to pay a fine of between 24 and 250 €.
As previously observed, in Luxembourg cigarettes’ price is very low. Here, a packet of fags costs 34% less than in France, 17% less than in Germany and 13.5% less than in Belgium. This situation contributed to the development of the so-called “tobacco tourism”; every day hundreds of people cross the border and finance the Grand Duchy through their stops in tobacco shops. The sale of cigarettes generates an additional income of 460 million euro per year and, according to the Ministry of Finance, 85-90 % of purchases are not made by residents.
In the light of the above, the criticisms expressed by Yves Martinet during the Nancy Congress are quite understandable, and cannot be simply considered as an undue intrusion within the internal policy of a neighbouring State. Indeed, the response of the Luxembourgian health Minister was almost immediate. Mars di Bartolomeo agreed with the need to increase cigarettes’ price, but also specified that he is not responsible for determining the level of excise. As for the adoption of a more restrictive law on this matter, the Minister said that a law draft should be presented next year.
We will see whether in 2012 Luxembourg will completely change its approach to smoking – a change that has repeatedly been delayed over time – and whether the Government will be able to get through the dangerous inconsistency it is victim of focusing more on citizens’ health and not and less on State funds.
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