Advertising for e-cigarettes should be restricted or banned, the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) said in a statement that also called for yearly reviews of duties on tobacco products.

Guidelines to Article 6 of the treaty approved during a week of meetings in Moscow, “provide for tax rates to be monitored, increased and adjusted annually, taking into account inflation and income growth. At the same time, all tobacco products should be taxed in a comparable way to prevent substitutions of the use of one product with another.”
Noting fiscal policy is the prerogative of national governments, FCTC recommended they adopt substantial tobacco tax increases. A footnote to the Article 6 decision notes a 2010 WHO recommendation that tobacco excise tax account for at least 70 per cent of the product retail price.
Many e-cigarette products are marketed by multi-national tobacco companies, FCTC said. The Moscow meeting acknowledged, “the need for regulations along the lines of policies concerning other tobacco products, including banning or restricting promotion, advertising and sponsorship,” of the electronic nicotine delivery devices.
After closing the meeting to the public and accredited media, the 18 Oct statement at the conclusion of the meeting was one of the few pronouncements to emerge from the meeting. A voluntary call was issued to the 179 FCTC signatory countries to increase cooperation to reduce use of tobacco products 30 per cent by 2025.
“Several measures aimed at restricting tobacco industry interference were decided by the parties, which concern implementation of Article 5.3”, of the treaty which states policy making must occur independent of tobacco industry influence. “These include requesting the Convention Secretariat to continue providing technical support to the Parties, and to engage with international organisations on the matters of tobacco companies’ influence”, FCTC said.