Edmonton – A recent online survey of 1,005 Albertans conducted by Leger Research reveals that 75 percent of respondents want the Alberta government to reinvest one-third of tobacco taxes in effective strategies to help smokers quit and to keep youth from starting to use tobacco.
“The Alberta government does not dedicate a single dime of the one billion dollars it collects annually from tobacco taxes to help smokers quit or keeping kids tobacco-free” said Les Hagen of Action on Smoking & Health (ASH). “The survey results reveal that Albertans expect the government to reinvest a significant portion of tobacco tax revenue into tobacco reduction and prevention. If the government can reinvest a substantial portion of the carbon levy into carbon reduction, then surely it can reinvest a portion of tobacco taxes into tobacco reduction. This deadly double standard cannot be justified. What’s good for carbon reduction is good for tobacco reduction”.
