Health Canada Tobacco Proposes Raising Age to 21, Banning Smoking in Apartments and Condos

Announcements, Other / Canada

quitsmoking

Health Canada is proposing new initiatives this spring to get the number of Canadians who use tobacco to below the current 5% of  the population who admit to using tobacco, including the 3.9 million Canadians who admit to being smokers. They would like to see this number to drop below 5% by the year 2035, as at the current rate some are predicting that 9% of Canadians will be smoking by the year 2036.

In the newly released paper, Health Canada proposes several different initiatives to tackle the tobacco problem, specifically looking at how to prevent youth and young adults from taking up smoking, as their rates of smoking have remained unchanged since 2013.

These initiatives included:

  • raising the minimum age of purchasing tobacco products to 21 years of age
  • tighten controls on contraband tobacco products, in order to protect the underage purchase of tobacco
  • enforce new smoke-free and vapour-free spaces in multiple unit dwellings (e.g. apartments, residences, condos), campuses, public spaces and parks
  • reduce the addictiveness of tobacco products sold in Canada

In the paper, Health Canada cites many reasons for exploring these new options, but some of the more poignant takeaways from the research included:

  • tobacco is the leading cause of premature death in Canada
  • more than 37,000 Canadians die from illnesses caused by smoking each year
  • ….that’s one Canadian every 14 minutes
  • the burdens of tobacco use on the Canadian economy are no joke; there are $17 billion in health care and indirect economic costs each year

But, with all that said, Health Canada is looking for you to give your input. You can send a letter to the government at this address:

Consultations on the Future of Tobacco Control in Canada
Room 1605-626
Mail Stop 0301A
150 Tunney’s Pasture Driveway
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0K9

Or, you can send an email to: [email protected].

If you do intend on sending a letter/email, be sure to disclose any instances of conflict of interest you may have with the tobacco industry, or the vaping industry.

You can click here to read the full paper from Health Canada.


5 responses to “Health Canada Tobacco Proposes Raising Age to 21, Banning Smoking in Apartments and Condos”

  1. adora says:

    Thank you for letting us know.

    I wish they would also propose extending the banning of smoking by the entrance from just schools and government buildings to all public buildings and apartments. No one should be forced to have second-hand smoke.

    For pubs and night clubs, they should pay a sin tax to allow their patrons to smoke in designated areas, the tax should be proportional in order to offset the increase health care cost from smoking.

  2. Christopher says:

    There should be no smoking in apartments or multi-unit apartments; including Marijuana. If you want to smoke you should have to go outside huddle in a circle and smoke together, not in the apartment. And if you smoke in the apartment you should be contacted and informed to stop or face a fine; simple as that.

  3. Katherine Moore says:

    Most places are already doing this. I’ve lived in 3 different apartments since 2012 and none of them allowed smoking indoors. It may be different for condos since you’re an owner not a renter.

  4. smokefree says:

    current rate of 5% is a typo – might be 15%, it’s definitely more than the 13% smoking rate

  5. Ciel says:

    Quote”
    It is now time to take stock of the accomplishments of the past and set out a bold new federal approach driven by an aggressive target. This paper serves to inform public consultations from February 22 to April 13, 2017 as well as discussions at the National Forum on the Future of Tobacco Control in Canada from February 28 to March 2, 2017.”
    So the National Forum is underway.

    Any changes to the smoking proposals have to permit smudging on school/post-secondary campuses where classrooms or spaces for teaching of First Nations’ customs are provided. Presumably outdoor spaces or specially vented rooms.

    Will proposals also apply to First Nations reserves? Tobacco is an important crop for some reserves.


















  •  




  • RSS Hot Canada Deals

  • Recent Comments

  • Did You Know?

    Smart Canucks is Canada's first Canadian shopping deals blog and has been operating since 2005!



  • Join Mailing List

    Categories

    Pages

    Archives

    Find Deals by Brand!