Cigarette maker Rothman's, Benson & Hedges is asking the court to overturn Saskatchewan's stiff new antitobacco laws. The laws, which came into effect in March, ban the display of cigarettes in places frequented by children. They also prohibit the use of store signs indicating that tobacco products are for sale and the industry-sponsored information campaign called Operation ID. They are among the toughest laws in Canada.
“It's the most preposterous, ridiculous thing you've ever seen,” Rothman's spokesperson John McDonald said when the legislation came into effect. “We will defend our rights vigorously.”
In a lawsuit filed in May, the company said the legislation violates its right to free expression and conflicts with federal laws concerning tobacco advertising. Justice Minister John Nilson was not surprised by the lawsuit. “They have a pattern of challenging legislation right around the world,” he said. “Our legislation is there to protect young children and we will stand firm.”
Shortly after the legislation came into effect, retailers began covering up store displays of cigarettes and other tobacco products. Some draped the displays with curtains or plastic garbage bags. Others hid tobacco products in cupboards or behind frosted glass. They also removed signs associated with Operation ID; the signs indicated that people who did not look 18 — the legal age for purchasing cigarettes — would be required to show identification. More than 93 000 Operation ID kits have been distributed across Canada in the past 5 years. The program, sponrosed by the tobacco industry, is supposed to help retailers stop tobacco sales to minors, but Neil Collishaw, research director at Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, isn't impressed.
“It was just a challenge to kids to get some fake ID or figure out a way to get around the system,” he says, adding that prominent tobacco displays in stores are simply a form of advertising that should be curbed. “It's really effective for selling cigarettes, and that means it's the antithesis of good health practice.”
Rothman's said it is not opposed to policies that prevent youth smoking but it believes that the Saskatchewan legislation goes too far. “The product is legal,” says McDonald. “It's readily available. People have made their decision to smoke or not to smoke before they go into a store.”
The lawsuit was heard in Saskatoon in June, when Rothman's asked the judge to throw out the legislation without a trial. Its lawyers argued that the restrictions on advertising and store displays hurt the smaller tobacco companies with lesser-known cigarette brands. “Some brands have been around a lot longer and people are used to asking for particular products, whereas if they can see a different product they might take it instead,” argued Rothman's lawyer Neil Gabrielson.
The judge reserved his decision, but Rothman's has indicated that it is willing to pursue the case to the Supreme Court of Canada if necessary. Manitoba is already in the process of passing similar legislation.
The Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey released this month shows that smoking rates are dropping in Saskatchewan, except among those aged 20–24. — Amy Jo Ehman, Saskatoon