If Smoking were Really that Serious, the Government Would Ban it

You might think that if smoking were really serious, the government would ban it. See below...

• In Quebec, 20% of the population smokes.
• In other words, 1.5 million people are addicter to an over-the-counter product.
• All these people are dependent – in other words, they’re addicted – to nicotine. They’re ordinary people, just like you and me.
• Imagine if the government made cigarettes illegal tomorrow, or in six months, or next year.
• Do you really think you and all these other “addicts” could stop smoking before the ban came into force?
• Just imagine what would happen. You and all these other people would be treated like criminals.
• Perhaps now you understand the problem the government faces.
• You might argue that the government benefits from the situation, since it charges tax on tobacco products.
• Nothing could be further from the truth! The social and health-related costs generated by tobacco use are far in excess of the government’s tax revenues.
• Smoking is therefore not a source of revenue for the government, or for the rest of us.

In reality, smoking causes serious problems, but banning it wouldn’t be realistic.

However, the government is working on a variety of initiatives and with a range of organizations to encourage smokers to quit and provide effective, easily available means to help them.

This site is an example. We hope you’ll find it useful!