# European Ombudsman's acknowledgement of receipt of the follow up reply of the European Commission in the inquiry about the transparency of the Commission’s interactions with representatives of the tobacco industry
- Author: European Ombudsman
- Date: 2025-07-03T10:00+02:00[Europe/Paris]
- [URL](https://www.ombudsman.europa.eu/en/doc/correspondence/en/207459)
---
|-------------------------------|
| President European Commission |

Dear President,

Thank you for your letter of 4 April 2025 informing me about the European Commission's response to my Office's suggestions for improvement in the above case.

I note that in total, 40 out of 46 Commission departments and services responded to the Commission's awareness exercise launched in 2024 to assess the risk of exposure of its management to the tobacco industry. This led the Commission to the conclusion that it is now clearer to its departments and services what is expected to ensure compliance with the rules on tobacco lobbying.[^\[1\]^](#_ftn1){#_ftnref1} I cannot but welcome the results of this exercise and the heightened awareness across the Commission services towards the issue of tobacco industry lobbying.

Furthermore, the adoption of a list of measures, including best proactive practices when dealing with tobacco lobbying (toolbox), which Commission services and cabinets should put in place depending on their degree of exposure should also lead to more consistent and harmonised practices within the Commission when it comes to dealing with tobacco industry representatives.

Finally, the Commission's general policy to interact with tobacco industry representatives only if this is strictly necessary for the purpose of its activities constitutes an additional safeguard that reinforces the effectiveness of the above mentioned measures.

I would like to thank the Commission for its genuine efforts to ensure the required degree of transparency of its interactions with representatives of the tobacco industry, and to comply with the EU's international commitments under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

Yours sincerely,

Teresa Anjinho  
European Ombudsman

Strasbourg, 28/04/2025

[\[1\]](#_ftnref1){#_ftn1} As set out in the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) of the World Health Organization, see: <https://fctc.who.int/resources/publications/m/item/guidelines-for-implementation-of-article-5.3>.