A Dutch court on Wednesday upheld a government ban on sweet flavours for e-cigarettes, arguing they encouraged young people to smoke.
The District Court in The Hague threw out an appeal by British American Tobacco (BAT), which argued that a ban on flavours in e-cigarettes went against the principle of the free movement of goods.
“The flavour ban is not unlawful,” the court’s verdict read.
“The harmfulness of the e-cigarette and the attractive effect of the sweet flavours on young people have been sufficiently established,” it added.
BAT had argued the flavour ban was a de-facto ban on e-cigarettes overall, which could even be counter-productive for authorities’ efforts to stamp out smoking.
The firm had argued that fewer smokers of regular cigarettes would be tempted to switch to e-cigarettes in an attempt to quit if the flavour ban was upheld.
But the court also stubbed out this argument.
“The fact that e-cigarettes with tobacco flavour are permitted is also a factor. Other manufacturers have succeeded in developing such e-cigarettes,” the court ruled.
“Smokers who try to quit by switching to an e-cigarette can therefore continue to do so under the flavour ban.”
