The tax on snus will be reduced by 20% at the end of next year. But for Oliver Rosengren (M), this is only a partial victory. Last fall, he proposed a much more radical reduction of the snus tax, as well as a total abolition of the tax on tobacco-free snus.
"Snus users will still pay far too much for the harm it causes. But politics is about taking small steps at a time." he tells Vejpkollen.
As Vejpkollen previously reported, the bourgeois government will reduce the tax on traditional snus by 20 percentt. In practice, this means that from November 2024, a can of snus will cost SEK 4 less per can. At the same time, the price of a pack of cigarettes will be increased by around SEK 4 per pack. The proposal has received both praise and blame, and has been called everything from a concession to the tobacco companies to a victory for public health. But for Oliver Rosengren it is more about fairness and about taxes being based on evidence and knowledge.
"I tabled my motion after informing myself about what snus actually costs society. It is clear that the costs of snus in Sweden are five times lower than the tax the government collects from snus sales. It is neither reasonable nor fair that snus users pay for something that they do not cause" says Oliver Rosengren to Vejpkollen.
"The alternative is usually cigarettes"
Part of the criticism of the tax cut is that it will attract more people to use snus, and that this would have negative consequences for public health. But Oliver Rosengren believes that the effect will be quite the opposite.
"Those who say this tend to equate nicotine use in the form of snus with no nicotine use at all. That's not how it works in reality, unfortunately. The best thing would be to not use nicotine at all. But at the same time, we must realize that the alternative to snus, for very many Swedes, is cigarettes. We must always take a realistic view of this"
Not ready for e-cigs - yet
As recently as the beginning of the year, the tax on snus was increased by 3% - something that the reduced tax more than offsets. At the same time, taxes on other harm-reducing products were increased, in e-liquid in particular, by almost 500% as recently as last year. Oliver Rosengren is not averse to taking a closer look at taxes there either, even if it's not topical at the moment.
"It is not as easy to argue for a tax reduction on e-cigarettes and e-liquid. In the case of snus, we have access to very detailed studies on tax revenues versus health costs. We don't have that for e-cigarettes. At least not yet. Otherwise, I'm always in favor of any proposal to bring harm reduction into the policy. I don't think we should tax products that have the potential to lead to health benefits in the future."
Want to see more evidence in the EU and WHO
The reduced snus tax will take effect in November 2024 Meanwhile, several interest groups warn of a sharp increase in taxes on nicotine pouches, a sister product to snus. This concerns the upcoming EU revision of the Tobacco Products Directive and a possible minimum tax on nicotine products.
But also WHO Global Tobacco Control Convention, which is due to be revised this autumn, is expected to revolve around guidelines that run counter to the policies taking shape in Sweden on tobacco and harm reduction. Oliver Rosengren hopes that the discussion within the EU and the WHO will move from being more moralistic to more evidence-based.
"I hope they see this from a longer perspective. We have almost eradicated smoking in Sweden with the help of snus and then I think it is more reasonable to discuss social benefits instead of unnecessary and unjustified restrictions. Not least within the EU, WHO and in the tobacco convention," he tells Vejpkollen.
There is no reason whatsoever not to reduce or remove the tax on e-juice either. Why do right-wing governments always have to appoint Christian Democrats to the post of Minister of Public Health? Should be better if Mattias Svensson or Edward Blom got it instead :)