Overview
- On Wednesday Hendrik Streeck, the federal drugs commissioner, said tobacco‑industry representatives have repeatedly targeted him at Berlin summer events and tried to wear him down.
- Streeck reported that lobby figures followed him, photographed his conversation partners, and later questioned those people to discredit his work.
- The governing coalition is advancing a tobacco‑tax package expected to raise roughly €700 million and lift average pack prices to about €9.10 next year with stepwise increases to €11.78 by 2030.
- Streeck is urging lawmakers to delete tax‑reference language on nicotine pouches, warns the products are highly addictive, backs bans on harmful e‑cigarette additives, and says he did hold a transparent meeting with industry representatives.
- The dispute exposes a split in the coalition between revenue‑focused tax measures and public‑health pushes for product bans, and it will likely shape parliamentary debate and cabinet decisions in the weeks ahead.