The European Parliament (EP) approved tobacco regulations that will cover two-thirds of cigarette packs with graphic warnings and forbid sale of menthols, setting the stage for final Council approval on 14 March.

National governments of the 28 European Union member states will have two years to comply from the date the revised Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) enters into force, the EP said in a statement. The Council of Ministers is expected to take up TPD at its 14 March meeting. Entry into force will occur 20 days after the law has been published in the official journal of the EU. That should be in April or May.
Last December, negotiators from the EP and Council agreed on the version approved in parliament by a 514-66 vote, with 58 abstentions. Today's pro-forma parliamentary approval likely will be echoed in the Council of Ministers.
Banning menthol cigarettes is part of a larger prohibition of characterising flavours in cigarettes and rolling tobaccos. A longer phase in period of six years will apply to the menthol ban, which means from 2020 under the current timetable.
Previously unregulated electronic cigarettes mostly will be regulated as tobacco products. Warnings will cover half of each side of a cigarette pack, in addition to 65 per cent of the front and back. Pictorial warnings on two-thirds of the pack also apply to rolling tobaccos.