Eu Tobacco Subsidies Go Up in Smoke!

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Thu 6th May 2004

The EU has announced an end to subsidy payments to EU tobacco farmers - a move that will remove the present contradictions between the one billion Euro (roughly 2/3 billion Pounds) paid in tobacco subsidies and the money spent on health polices within the EU.

East Midlands MEP Bill Newton Dunn welcomed the news:

"I am glad that tobacco, considered a major enemy to public health, whose damage costs the NHS vast amounts of money, will no longer be subsidised. For many years I have voted in favour of amendments to the EU's budget that sought to reduce tobacco subsidies to zero and I am pleased that we have now overcome the difficulties in gaining sufficient support in the European Parliament. It has been crazy that on the one hand the EU spends money encouraging the production of tobacco in EU Mediterranean countries but on the other hand the EU and its Member States, including the UK, spend huge amounts of money trying to prevent the damage caused by smoking."

"This is also another step towards the much needed reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The CAP needs to be reassessed not only in terms of its implications for EU Member States but also its implications for non EU, developing countries."

The European Commission launches anti-smoking campaigns such as the health warnings on cigarette packets. National governments are responsible for laying down punitive tobacco duties and tackling the widespread addiction.

The decision to end tobacco subsidies was made by EU Agriculture Ministers meeting in Luxembourg last week, in a marathon 18-hour negotiation. The main opposition came from the Mediterranean tobacco growing countries of Spain and Greece.