Overview

• Spain’s Council of Ministers approved an anteproyecto this month expanding smoke-free rules to bar and restaurant terraces, stadiums, open-air events, and 15‑metre buffers around health, cultural, educational, sports and children’s spaces.
• The draft treats vaping like smoking, bans single-use e‑cigarettes, and for the first time prohibits consumption by minors with possible fines for parents if underage use is detected.
• The proposal bars smoking inside company vehicles and deems hotel smoking an infraction except in outdoor areas, while allowing fixed rooms designated for smokers.
• Hospitality and hotel groups label the measures disproportionate and harmful for tourism, arguing terraces are ventilated and warning of customer confusion compared with Mediterranean competitors.
• Vape shops in Vigo report a sales slump after the government’s announcement and point to steep nicotine tax hikes and regulatory uncertainty, as the Health Ministry runs a campaign telling young people e‑cigarettes are harmful.