The tobacco industry actively interfered in the development and implementation of key public health policies for tobacco control in Spain between 2023 and 2024. This is the main conclusion of a study led by researchers from the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO) and the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), recently published in the scientific journal Tobacco Control.
According to the research, the tobacco industry used its official position within Spain’s Advisory Committee of the Tobacco Market Commission (CMT) to obstruct and delay public health measures aimed at reducing tobacco consumption, such as the introduction of plain packaging.
The study is based on the analysis of 22 official minutes from meetings of the Advisory Committee, from which 29 statements were selected. These describe a systematic pattern of political interference strategies by the tobacco industry. The most common tactics were obstruction and delay in implementing key measures, such as plain packaging, identified in 14 statements.
On seven occasions, the industry attempted to manage information unfavorable to its interests, while in five interventions it claimed its right to participate in political debates as a strategy to maintain its influence. The study also identified two veiled threats of legal action against regulations that could harm its commercial interests.
The authors of the study conclude that the tobacco industry “exploited its institutionalized role, acting as a Trojan horse” to prioritize its commercial interests over public health. They warn that this position, protected by Spanish legislation, “opens a clear channel for interference” and directly contravenes Spain’s obligations under Article 5.3 of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).
In this regard, the researchers call for urgent reforms to protect public health policies from the interests of the tobacco industry.