Sharply reduced tax on snus. That's what Swedish snus smokers can expect if the government's proposal goes through in next year's budget. At the same time, it will become more expensive to smoke. Among snus users, the message is received with cautious joy.
"Hopefully this is just the beginning of a trend change in tobacco policy. Now we hope for more harm reduction and more conscious decisions to reduce smoking in Sweden even more" says Samuel Lundell, chairman of the Swedish Snus Association.
The government and the SD want to reduce the tax on snus in connection with next year's budget. The 20% tax cut, which is expected to amount to SEK 3 per can in shops, will be financed by a corresponding tax increase on smoking tobacco, i.e. cigarettes.
"The motive behind this is that there are significantly more Swedes who use snus than who smoke. The reason why this has happened, I suspect, is because the health effects of smoking are much more negative and tangible than the effects of snus use," says Oscar Sjöstedt, economic policy spokesperson for the Swedish Social Democratic Party, to the Swedish Democrat the media channel Riks.
Want to reduce harm from smoking
The governing parties, together with the Sweden Democrats, have already had a consensus on the role of snus in harm reductionat least for former smokers who have switched from cigarettes to snuff. This is in contrast to the Left Bloc, where perceptions of snus use, vejping and smoking does not distinguish between different harm risks. The tax cut will be the first clear policy proposal that could promote snus use at the expense of smoking.
"This is an important trend reversal, for sure. Snus has a harm-reducing effect on nicotine use in Sweden, but we haven't seen many policy decisions that actually acknowledge that. Hopefully, this is just the beginning of a different direction than that pushed by previous governments," Samuel Lundell told Vejpkollen.
"No negative impact on public health"
But according to Oscar Sjöstedt, SD, it is not the effects on public health that are the primary reason for the change in the tax.
"Adults can make their own choices and I don't want to point fingers. There is probably no adult who is not aware of the risks of using tobacco of various kinds. But if this leads to people who smoke today to quit smoking and start using snus instead, I can't see that it would have a negative impact on public health. Quite the opposite," says Oscar Sjöstedt to Riks.
Samuel Lundell and the Swedish Snus Association are currently most pleased that the government is taking the snus issue seriously.
"Last year the snus tax was increased, now it's being reduced instead, and that's certainly a step in the right direction. We would have preferred to see the tax on snus abolished completely. " says Samuel Lundell to Vejpkollen.
Criticism of investigation
Earlier this year, the government asked the Public Health Agency to produce supporting documents to compare the differences in harm risk between different forms of nicotine use. The study found that snus, like vejp, is likely to be associated with fewer risks than smoking - although, according to Swedish authorities, there is no good evidence to assess the risks. However, the investigation was criticized for not taking into account a sufficient number of relevant studies and syntheses in the field.
Not until next fall budget
The government's planned proposal to reduce the tax on snus does not currently affect other oral nicotine products, such as white snus or nicotine pouches. Neither do changes to the tax on e-liquid is included in the expected proposal. According to the information to Aftonbladet the tax cut can only take effect in November 2024 - and will not be included in the 2023 fall budget.
