EU countries agreed Tuesday on a push for stricter anti-smoking rules, backing bans on smoking and vaping in many outdoor areas including playgrounds and cafe patios.
A recommendation inviting member states to crack down on second-hand smoke and vapour was adopted by health ministers from the bloc's 27 nations meeting in Brussels.
"Today's agreement is a crucial step towards our goal of a tobacco-free generation in Europe, and is critical in protecting our children and young people from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke," said the EU's health commissioner, Oliver Varhelyi.
The recommendation is non-binding, as health is a competence of individual member states.
But it gives an indication of the policies governments could pursue in the future as they seek to reduce smoke-related deaths and ailments.
It passed with all countries voting in favour apart from Germany and Greece, which abstained, underscoring some political divisions on the issue.
A Health Ministry spokesperson said Malta was always in favour of strengthening standards that protect public health and pointed out that several measures suggested in the recommendation are already enshrined in Maltese law.
“The Maltese government will be considering this recommendation further. If any measures will be deemed necessary to safeguard public health further, the government will take the necessary decisions after consultation with all stakeholders and the public,” the spokesperson said.
Last week, the European Parliament voted against a similar text.
Strong public support for partial smoking ban in Malta
A Eurobarometer survey last June showed that there is widespread support for a ban on smoking in public spaces such as parks, beaches, and the entrance of public spaces where social distancing cannot be enforced. While in the EU as a whole, 56% supported such a measure, in Malta support was 73%.
The document approved on Tuesday calls on EU countries to extend restrictions in place for cigarettes to cover "emerging products", such as heated tobacco devices and electronic cigarettes that are increasingly popular with young people.
Governments should "provide effective protection" from aerosols emitted by these in indoor environments such as offices and public buildings.
Following an initial proposal put forward by the European Commission in September, the text says such protection should also be granted in some outdoor areas.
This in practice entails that all smoking should be banned in locations including swimming pools, beaches, zoos, rooftop bars and restaurant terraces.
'Violation of individual freedom'
The push comes as the EU is aiming to reduce its smoking population from around 25 percent now to less than five percent of the total by 2040, as part of its "Beating Cancer Plan".
Tobacco use is estimated to kill more than eight million people globally each year, including about 1.3 million non-smokers who are exposed to second-hand smoke, World Health Organization (WHO) statistics show.
Emissions from electronic cigarettes also typically contain nicotine and other toxic substances that are harmful including to second-hand smokers, according to the WHO.
But treating smoking and vaping the same way is contentious.
In a joint declaration ahead of the vote, Italy and Romania said calls for a ban on outdoor vaping lacked scientific basis and should have not been included in the recommendation. The two countries nevertheless backed the text.
Germany abstained saying that the issue fell within the competencies of its regions -- not the central government -- and some opposed a ban on smoking in outdoor terraces and patios.
Greece similarly voiced scepticism about the effect of such rules, saying more scientific data was needed on the effects of e-cigarettes.
The European Parliament last week voted against a resolution on the same subject, after lawmakers on the right passed amendments to differentiate between traditional tobacco products and electronic devices.
This drew the ire of the left, which had supported the original text but rejected its watered down version.
"We see the outdoor smoking ban as a violation of individual freedom," Pietro Fiocchi, a lawmaker with the hard-right ECR group, said in a statement.
The parliamentary resolution, which would have had only symbolic value, was turned down with 378 votes against and only 152 in favour.