A coalition of health groups want the province to stop stalling on measures to protect kids from tobacco.
They are calling for the implementation of legislation that was passed three years ago, aimed at reducing tobacco product sales to minors.
In Nov. 2014 the Alberta Government introduced tougher tobacco laws that prohibited smoking in vehicles with children and in May 2015 they banned flavoured tobacco and implemented a minimum pack sizes for specific products.
The province’s 10 year plan, that was adopted in 2012 to create a tobacco-free future, plans to provide youth, teachers and parents with up-to-date information on the risks associated with tobacco, new school health programs focused on reducing tobacco and increase awareness of the harms through social media.
Action on Smoking and Health’s Les Hagen said they thought the NDP were on track to do it after they banned menthol tobacco within 30 days of being in office.
“So, we had every reason to believe that progress was going to continue, and quite frankly, they led everyone to believe that progress was going to continue. But, in the past 20 months there has been absolutely no regulatory movement of tobacco reduction in Alberta,” Hagen said.
Members of the Heart and Stroke Foundation, Canadian Cancer Society and the College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta gathered outside the Alberta Legislature Monday, along with Action on Smoking and Health to urge the government to implement the legislation.
