The Smokefree Partnership, together with the EHN and the CNCT, held a two-day seminar in Leuven on 3rd and 4th May 2007.

The seminar, entitled "Consensus seminar on tobacco and nicotine product regulation", brought together over 50 members of the tobacco and scientific communities working on tobacco control throughout Europe. The seminar was an opportunity to reflect on recent achievements in tobacco ocntrol, in spite of numerous obstacles and challenges, and to explore what consensus can be achieved by mutual exchange.

The consensus statement produced by the seminar provides a useful basis for tobacco control advocates to talk to European policy makers. The statement begins with the status quo on tobacco control, indicates where there are gaps in the evidence base and sets out a common vision on where tobacco control at the European level should be within the 15 years. Several key milestones are identified in the statement and the next step should be to develop a road map on how to achieve the vision.