|
Students smoking smuggled smokes: Study
http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/272684
| quote: | Nov 01, 2007 12:52 PM
THE CANADIAN PRESS
OTTAWA – Researchers who collected discarded cigarette butts from around Quebec and Ontario high schools say an "alarming" number of teenagers are smoking contraband tobacco.
The researchers, hired by the Canadian Convenience Stores Association, analyzed more than 11,000 cigarette butts taken from public grounds around 55 high schools in Ontario and 50 in Quebec.
They determined that in Ontario, 24 per cent of high-schoolers' cigarette butts were contraband, while in Quebec contraband made up 35 per cent of schoolyard butts.
"The rampant use of these contraband cigarettes is a growing problem across Canada," association president Dave Bryans said in a statement today. "We were absolutely shocked by the extent to which it is actually happening.
"There are clearly some very serious implications as a result of these findings."
The organization said illegal cigarettes are being imported and sold throughout Canada inexpensively and with no government oversight.
Although youth smoking rates are at an all-time low, the study said use of "cheap, easily accessible, unregulated and untaxed" contraband tobacco cigarettes is widespread among youth.
"Not only are these illegal cigarettes robbing the government of billions in tax revenue each year, but even more disconcerting is that no one knows what's really in these contraband cigarettes," said Bryans. "They're often made in illegal, unregulated factories and sold to kids out of the trunks of cars.
"This should be a serious wake-up call to youth smokers, their parents, police agencies and government officials alike."
The storeowners group said contraband cigarettes are being smuggled from as far away as China and tens of thousands of cartons are illegally sold in Canada each day.
And they come cheap, with a pack of 20 cigarettes often going for as little as $1, compared with $8 for government-taxed cigarettes.
"This all happens with absolutely no government inspection, testing, or review," said a statement from the storeowners.
Some other facts from the study by the independent research company, Arcus Group:
– 11,267 cigarette butts from around schools were collected, 5,457 in Ontario and 5,810 in Quebec.
– In Ontario, the highest incidences of contraband were in Newmarket and Aurora, at 50 and 47 per cent respectively, while Burlington and Oakville had the lowest, at nine and eight per cent.
– In Quebec, the highest incidences of contraband were in Anjou and Cote-des-Neiges at 74 and 60 per cent respectively, while St-Michel and Greenfield Park had the lowest at 12 and 18 per cent.
– Half the municipalities or regions surveyed – 22 of 44 – exceeded a 30 per cent share of illegal cigarette butts, while 11 municipalities had over 40 per cent illegal cigarette butts. |
anyone else amused at the hypocrisy of calling out the "safety" of unregulated cigarettes by the head of a store association whose members' businesses live and die by cigarette sales?
I also suppose that smokers actually know what's in store-bought, gov't-regulated cigarettes? and store bought ones are necessarily more "safe"? safe is pretty fucking relative when you're talking about known carcinogenic items, lol.
fucking tools. Just come out and say that you're upset at all the lost revenue your store owners are realizing from the black market and then STFU. pretending to give one fuck about people's health (or gov't revenue) is just pathetic.
 x 100
|
