The Dutch health ministry is urging Brussels to impose “comprehensive restrictions on flavours, maximum nicotine levels and plain packaging” on e-cigarettes and other nicotine products, European news website Euractiv has reported.

Junior health minister Vincent Karremans has written to the European Commission, saying the decision to delay legislation on new nicotine products is “harmful”, the website, which has seen the letter, said.

The letter is addressed to EU health chief Olivér Várhelyi and comes after the commission decided to exclude tobacco-related legislation from its 2025 work programme.

However, Karremans has now urged him to take “decisive” action to protect young people’s health, the website said. Belgium and Latvia have backed the Dutch position.

The Dutch also want the EU to establish a legal framework for cross-border distance sales of new tobacco products, arguing that these allow consumers to bypass national restrictions.

The Netherlands has been struggling to deal with a surge in vaping among teenagers.

In 2023, Dutch MPs voted in favour of a D66 motion to introduce a tax on e-cigarettes and vapes, although officials say this is unlikely to happen before 2029. Flavoured vaping liquids have already been banned in the Netherlands.

Research by the Trimbos addiction institute shows that one in five young people under the age of 25 uses a vape, and 70% of them also smoke tobacco cigarettes. The age limit of 18 for using vapes is also widely flouted, and internet sales have flourished.

At least 14 children were hospitalised in 2024 as a result of using vapes, and paediatricians suspect many more children are experiencing health problems.

Research has also shown that some vapes popular with teenagers are packed with toxic metals, cancer-causing chemicals, and a much higher level of nicotine than legally allowed.