Smoking levels remain persistently high among young people, new report finds

A European Commission report on the effectiveness of the tobacco products directive, which limits advertising and other merchandising measures across the bloc since its introduction in 2016, found youth smoking rates fell to 20% in 2020 from 25% in 2014.

Despite tobacco consumption leading to 700,000 premature deaths across the EU every year, smoking levels among younger citizens remains stubbornly high, a new report has found.

A European Commission report on the effectiveness of the tobacco products directive, which limits advertising and other merchandising measures across the bloc since its introduction in 2016, found youth smoking rates fell to 20% in 2020 from 25% in 2014, after peaking at 29% in 2017.