A new anti-smoking amendment proposed for Ontario would ban the sale of cigarettes on post-secondary campuses.
On Nov. 18 Minister of Health and Long-Term Care Deborah Matthews told the Ontario legislature that the proposed legislation, if passed, would prohibit the sale of tobacco on post-secondary education campuses in an attempt to reach Ontario’s goal of reducing tobacco in the province to the lowest levels in the country.
“We want to protect youth from second-hand smoke and we also want to denormalize smoking in settings where youth see adults smoking,” she was stated as saying.
Students and student-run organizations have conflicting opinions.
Members of Leave The Pack Behind, a student-run anti-smoking organization funded by Ontario’s government, are in favour of the proposed legislation.
“Stopping the sale of tobacco would be a positive thing. With easy access to tobacco, [students] don’t have the opportunity to think about the cons of smoking right away,” said Geneviève Meloche, a member of Leave The Pack Behind.
“This ban will help make campuses a healthier place for students to continue their education,” she said.
Ali Tohme, a first-year political science student who smokes, holds a different view.
“Recent municipal laws restricting smoking in areas such as restaurant patios have prevented me from smoking, but have not made me stop,” he said.
“If they banned the sales of cigarettes in universities, it would just mean I would need to purchase it somewhere else, so it might make me smoke less, but it probably won’t make me quit.”
Henry’s Convenience Store made a profit of over $50,000 last school year on cigarettes, selling a total of $257,331.81, according to the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) budget.
CUSA has had numerous internal debates about the proposed legislation, vice-president (finance) Folarin Odunayo said.
“We’ve been aware of this issue for a while and it’s something that has been on our radar,” he said.
He said the association won’t be taking a stance either for or against the proposed ban.
Others proposals in the bill include increasing fines for those who sell tobacco to minors and making them the highest in Canada, prohibiting the sale of tobacco products containing flavouring like bubblegum or grape, and strengthening enforcement tools by giving health inspectors authority to examine water pipes and test for tobacco in non-smoking areas.
