Overview

• The cabinet approved a draft that would prohibit smoking and vaping on bar and restaurant terraces, beaches, parks, bus stops and stadiums, as well as outside schools, universities, medical centers and transport stations, and at concerts and festivals.
• The proposal treats electronic cigarettes, nicotine pouches, shisha and heated-tobacco devices the same as conventional cigarettes, extending identical restrictions to all such products.
• The text would ban single‑use e‑cigarettes, prohibit use by minors, and tighten rules on advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco and related products.
• Plain packaging is not included in the draft after reported coalition disagreements, drawing criticism from anti‑tobacco campaigners.
• The measure can be amended during consultation and parliamentary debate, with hospitality groups warning of economic impacts as the government cites roughly 50,000 smoking‑related deaths annually.