Tobacco Control Policy in the Netherlands: Between Economy, Public Health, and Ideology

Abstract

Governments have known since the 1960s that smoking results in irreversible health damage. This open access book examines why governments have done so little to combat this when they have been aware of the problem and its solutions for decades. What are the strategies and decisions that make a difference, given that policy environments are often not conducive to change? Taking the Netherlands as an example, this book helps to understand the complex policy process at the national level and why it so often appears irrational to us. It is the most sophisticated analysis of tobacco control policy to date, applying insights from political sciences to the field of tobacco control.