Brussels prepares to hit cigarette prices in Luxembourg
Afif Ramdhasuma, Unsplash
Another pillar of Luxembourg's "shopping tourism" - cheap tobacco - is under threat after the benefits of buying cheap fuel have diminished. The European Commission is planning to change the principle of tobacco taxation: the new rules will link excise taxes to the level of purchasing power in the country. For Luxembourg, one of the wealthiest EU countries, this could result in a sharp rise in prices.
If the initiative passes, the price of a pack of 20 cigarettes could jump by 3.5 euros. This would bring Luxembourg's prices closer to those of neighbouring France, where the price already exceeds 10 euros. The economic advantage that thousands of people in the border regions cross the border every day for tobacco and fuel will start to melt away.
The news sparked a debate on social media and on lessentiel.lu. One reader noted: "After tobacco, sugar could be next. It is better to ban unhealthy products than to just raise prices and protect someone's interests at the expense of people's health".
The European Commission's proposal still has to be agreed, but if it is adopted, Luxembourg will face a new stage of transformation of its consumer landscape. And the economic "magnet" for cross-border smokers may no longer work.
