At GTNF 2026 in Lisbon, a panel examining the science behind the European Union’s proposed TPD3 legislation questioned whether policymakers are adequately considering the available evidence on tobacco harm reduction. Moderator Sud Patwardhan said decisions are being made on information that has been submitted but not necessarily analyzed, while Peter Beckett of Three Six One said science alone may not determine regulatory outcomes, with political pressure likely to remain influential. Imperial Brands’ Libby Clarke argued that regulation should reflect the best available science and said recent EY reports gave too little consideration to relative risk and harm reduction. Nathalie Darge of Tobacco Europe said stakeholders should remain engaged with the regulatory process, while Konstantinos Farsalinos of the Universities of Patras and West Attica said scientists have raised concerns that evidence supporting harm reduction and flexible regulation is being overlooked.
Clarke said real-world evidence and the cumulative weight of research should be considered rather than focusing primarily on absolute risk, pointing to countries that have taken what she described as pragmatic approaches to tobacco harm reduction and seen declines in smoking. Farsalinos said the EU’s call for evidence generated what he described as an unprecedented volume of feedback supporting harm reduction and flexible regulation, but that senior health officials have opposed those views. He called for the results to be published and for additional data to be generated and communicated.
