The parties accused the executive on Thursday of trying to condition the freedom of Portuguese through the new tobacco law, with Socialist deputy Maria Antónia Almeida Santos opining that “There’s no reason to move on”.
In the parliamentary debate on the government’s proposal on the tobacco law, which aims to introduce new restrictions on the sale of tobacco and on places where smoking is allowed, the parties recognized the harm of tobacco to health, but criticized the proposed changes .
Socialist MP Maria Antónia Almeida Santos stated that the government’s bill “brings together two completely different issues, which should deserve an independent assessment.”
“One concerns the transposition into the Portuguese legal system of a European directive regulating only the issue of different flavours, the other concerns restrictions on places of sale or consumption of tobacco products, [que] seeks to make a fundamental change in the law regarding smoking prevention, going well beyond the directive”orphan.
The State Secretary considered this justified “amend the law with a view to transposing the directive [europeia] but despite all other arguments used, there is no reason, evidence or urgency to go further than that.”pointing out that this is still the debate in general.
“As for the issue of bans, it is clear that no one would like to have rights, freedoms and guarantees in such an imposing way”and asked if they would be made “improvements, corrections and taking into account that this must result in a law that is adhered to and that also awaits the global guidelines that may come after COP10, which will take place in November”.
Previously, socialist Paulo Marques refused to allow smoking prevention to be used as a “throwing weapon to turn Portuguese against Portuguese” and called for specialists to be able to do this. “There must be as much consensus as possible”.
For the PSD, deputy Rui Cristina said that between 2019 and 2021 there had been a decrease “by less than half” in the number of smoking cessation counseling locations and in the number of consultations carried out, in addition to a “brutal reduction” in the number of people covered by prevention initiatives.
“Is it serious that the government is adopting measures that draconianly restrict the points of sale of tobacco products, without guaranteeing smokers quick access to smoking cessation consultations and treatments?”he wondered.
The deputy also asked “How is it possible that the government does not accompany such restrictive legislation with concrete, effective and measurable measures for people who smoke and want to quit” and indicated that the party will specifically promote hearings and decide at the end of the process “which option best and most adequately serves the interests of the Portuguese”.
André Ventura, from Chega, considered that this proposal “goes far beyond the European directive” and, while “Europe wants to regulate, the PS wants to ban”, and wondered whether businessmen who have made changes in the spaces in recent years applied will be compensated. .
“Let those who smoke be smokers, let freedom work, the Portuguese are free”he requested.
Representative Joana Cordeiro stated that the Liberal Initiative (IL) “it does not tolerate excessive prohibitionism or paternalistic attitudes of the state towards citizens”.
“Anyone who decides to smoke is aware of all the risks. If he decides to do so, it is called freedom”he emphasized.
The intervention of PS deputy Maria Antónia Almeida Santos led deputy João Cotrim de Figueiredo from IL to make a call: “Please give this group the freedom to vote. We all know smoking is bad, but voting against your conscience is even worse”.
Immediately afterwards, deputy Susana Amador asked to speak to indicate that “the basic principle of the PS is the freedom of voting” of the bank.
João Dias, from the PCP, pointed out that smoking starts at a very young age and stressed the importance of offering “effective and concrete public health measures by the state, and not pitting smokers against smokers.”
Blocist deputy Isabel Pires opined that, when “greatly limit places where people can smoke, especially outdoors”are citizens “prevented from engaging in behavior within their sphere of freedom”.
“We are really entering into a debate about control, about prohibition, which could have the opposite result”he defended, pointing out that it is not up to parliament or the government, “from a moralistic and prohibitionist point of view, to say that people should stop smoking”.
Inês de Sousa Real of PAN (who, like Chega, brought projects into this debate), rejected “excessive or unlawful solutions”.
Livre’s sole deputy defended that the Portuguese have the “right to manage their buildings” and asked that “smokers should not be belittled or infantilized.”
In a debate where the Minister of Health was present but did not intervene, the State Secretary for Health Promotion insisted that the change in the law is necessary and that the measures are ‘highly based on scientific evidence’ and ‘usually welcomed by the population, and these will be no exception.”
Regarding stop-smoking consultations, the minister indicates that these have decreased in recent years as a result of the pandemic, but are currently almost at the same level as in 2019.
Source: DN
