To launch the Tobacco Control Strategy

Speaking Notes
for
Allan Rock
Minister of Health

Parliament Hill,
Ottawa, Ontario
April 5th, 2001

As delivered.

Each and every year smoking kills more Canadians than car accidents, murder, suicide and alcohol combined. Over 45,000 Canadians die every year as a result of illness caused by using tobacco. It's the most pressing public health issue in the country. And we all know there's no single simple answer that's going to cure all this tomorrow.

The best evidence however, shows that the most effective public policy is for governments to join hands with communities in a broad, integrated and sustained strategy. To change attitudes, to influence behaviour and to thereby reduce the toll on the health of Canadians.

Many components of such a strategy are already in place in Canada. Four years ago, we passed legislation dealing with tobacco. It is now used by the World Health Organization and seen as a model for other countries. Restrictions with respect to sponsorship and advertising, which prevent the tobacco companies from making smoking attractive. Regulations that force tobacco companies to declare their promotional activities so that the public can be aware of what they are doing. And finally, new labels on all packaging which inform the public of the health risks of smoking are all important measures.

With today's measures we will be able to build upon these elements in a meaningful way. We're announcing today that over the coming five years, more than $480 million will be devoted to a new tobacco strategy. My colleagues will speak to the tax and law enforcement elements of that strategy in a moment. Permit me first to deal with those parts of the strategy for which Health Canada is responsible.

By 2004, three years from now, Health Canada will devote $110 million each year to funding its anti-smoking efforts. That's more than 10 times the amount we would otherwise be spending a year from now.

That money will be used to make sure, among other things, that the Tobacco Act is enforced to fund local efforts to influence children and young people not to start smoking. And to help smokers who want to quit, to kick the habit. We will also devote a meaningful amount of that money toward a mass media campaign to put the spotlight on smoking as the public health issue that it truly is. The time has come to establish specific, concrete and meaningful goals in our battle against smoking.

And today we've selected our goals for the coming 10 years. There are three. First, we establish today the goal of reducing by 20 per cent, the number of people who smoke in this country. Second, we establish today, the goal of reducing by 30 per cent the number of cigarettes sold in this country. And third, we establish the goal of increasing to 80 per cent, the number of retail facilities who comply with the Tobacco Act the way it forbids sales to young people.

I am aware of the fact that these are very ambitious goals that will not be easy to accomplish. At the same time we must spare no effort to try and make them a reality. And I seriously believe that, through the measures that we are announcing today, we will achieve those goals.

Before I finish, I think it's very important to acknowledge the direct role played by our government caucus in the development of the elements of the strategy we're announcing today. Time and again members of our caucus have worked with us to insist that these concrete and important measures be put in place to tackle smoking as a national issue. And I want to acknowledge their work as well as the contribution of Senator Kenney in putting this issue so high on the public agenda. I want to acknowledge the contribution of the health groups who've worked closely with us in coming to a better understanding of strategies that work. And I want to thank my colleagues, particularly Minister Martin and Minister MacAuley who are here with me today, for their contribution toward this strategy.

Thank you.