Plain packaging on tobacco products works. That's why Big Tobacco will fight it with everything it's got.
Health Canada is considering plain-packaging laws, but first it's asking for feedback from Canadians. Tell Minister Jane Philpott we vote for saving lives, not corporate profits. There’s only a few days left before the deadline.
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Dear Jane Philpott.
The following is an important message from the sumofus.org.
Smoking kills. It's the leading cause of premature death in Canada, yet nearly one in five Canadians still do it. And the Big Tobacco companies continue to make massive profits from this toxic habit.
But there is an easy, effective solution to make sure Big Tobacco draws its last breath: plain packaging. It's legislation that bans any branding or advertising on a cigarette package other than the company name in plain font -- and it's been proven to work all over the world, including Australia, Ireland and Great Britain.
We have just a few days to tell them it's a great idea.
It's more important than ever that we pitch in, because we know that Big Tobacco is going to fight it with everything it's got. Philip Morris sued Australia when it tried the same thing, and waged a bitter battle against the common-sense solution. Just wait until it targets Canada.
Lung cancer kills tens of thousands of Canadians each year, and 114,000 kids under 17 smoke regularly. And yet this is business as usual for the world's biggest tobacco companies.
Big Tobacco is the original corporate liar. It knew that smoking killed people and it concealed it. It actively advertised to sell cigarettes to children and then lied about it. "The tobacco industry's strategy over decades has been one of deny, deny, deny and oppose, oppose, oppose", said a senior policy analyst with the Canadian Cancer Society. Meanwhile, Canadians are dying.
Big Tobacco has already said it will fight this move by Health Canada, and it hasn't even been implemented yet. Because it knows it will work -- Australia witnessed the biggest decline in smoking in its history after implementing plain packaging laws in 2012.
The SumOfUs community has come together before to protect our health in the face of corporate profits. Together we're working to halt the privatization of our blood supply in Canada and defend our public health care system, and we've fought for a ban on dangerous chemicals like Atrazine.
The consultations close on Wednesday, August 31st. Now is the time to raise our voices and demand a stop to Big Tobacco’s influence -- every message will go directly to Health Canada.
Thanks for all that you do,
Angus, Rosa, and the rest of the SumOfUs team
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