Press Release: Friday 20 June 2025
Minister for Health attends EPSCO meeting of EU Health Ministers in Luxembourg
The Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD, is today representing Ireland at the Employment, Social Policy, Health, and Consumer Affairs (EPSCO) Council Health Council meeting in Luxembourg.
The agenda for the EPSCO Council meeting includes a debate on the proposal for a Critical Medicines Act, a working lunch on cybersecurity in hospital and healthcare providers, as well as an exchange of views on EU measures on prevention, including alcohol and tobacco consumption. The Council will also approve Conclusions on safeguarding the mental wellbeing of children and young people in a world of modern digital technologies and social media.
On behalf of Ireland, Belgium, Estonia, Finland, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Croatia and Spain, the Minister will also call on the European Commission to bring forward the revised Tobacco Products Directive as soon as possible. This is an urgent call for action at EU level to protect young people from the harm caused by tobacco and nicotine products.
Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD, said:
“I am really pleased to join health colleagues from across Europe for this EPSCO meeting. It is now over ten years since the current Tobacco Products Directive was enacted. Since that time, the market has evolved significantly and new nicotine containing products, such as vapes and pouches, have come on to the market.
“As Minister for Health I want to protect young people from the harm caused by tobacco and nicotine products, and Ireland is joining colleagues from like-minded Member States to call for action on the publication of a revised EU Directive.
“In the absence of the Directive being revised, individual Member States have moved ahead with their own e-cigarette measures on flavours and packaging, on banning disposable products and their own tobacco measures such as Ireland’s recently enacted law to raise the age of sale of tobacco products to 21.
“These measures at Member State level are important to protect our people. That is why Ireland, and all the Member States that co-signed the recent letter to Commissioner Várhelyi, ask that the revised Tobacco Products Directive be brought forward as soon as possible.”
The Minister will also hold a bilateral meeting with the European Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare, Olivér Várhely, to discuss Ireland’s preparation for Presidency of the Council in July 2026.