Popular initiative against tobacco advertising submitted
The popular initiative «Yes to Protecting Children and Adolescents from Tobacco Advertising» has been submitted. The initiative committee, made up of various health organizations, submitted 113,500 signatures to the Federal Chancellery on Thursday.
"We don't want children and young people to be burdened with this advertising," Hans Stöckli, president of the initiative association, told the Keystone-SDA news agency on Thursday. Numerous boxes containing the signatures were handed over to the Federal Chancellery amid fuming smoke meant to symbolize cigarette smoke.
The initiative calls for a complete ban on tobacco advertising that reaches children or young people. Specifically, cigarette advertising on billboards in public spaces is to be banned throughout Switzerland. Today, tobacco advertising is banned on radio and television. Advertising for tobacco products that is specifically targeted at young people is also prohibited. In addition, it is open to each canton to enact further bans on tobacco advertising (Overview: graphic below).
Council of States decides next week
The initiators recently received support from the Health Committee of the Council of States (SGK). In mid-August, it called for a ban on tobacco advertisements in the press and on the Internet. The Council of States will decide on this next week.
For the initiative committee, the SGK's proposal is a step in the right direction. According to Stöckli, however, it only came about because of the pressure of the initiative. "We had to submit this initiative because without this pressure, the parliament would not come to the right decision," Stöckli explained.
A first attempt at a new Tobacco Products Act failed in parliament in 2016. In a second attempt, the Federal Council initially also envisaged advertising restrictions. However, following criticism in the consultation process, it deleted these. (SDA)
