OTTAWA - Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh today welcomed the new province-wide smoking bans in Manitoba and New Brunswick. Both provinces have banned smoking in all public places, including bars and restaurants. The legislation creates the strictest province-wide bans in the country.

\"I would like to congratulate New Brunswick and Manitoba, who go smoke-free today, said Minister Dosanjh . \"This is a significant milestone that highlights the impressive momentum that has been building across Canada towards establishing smoke-free work places. It is also a timely and eloquent response to the launch this week of mychoice.ca a website funded by the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council that seeks to turn back the clock on tobacco control.\"

Heather Crowe, a longtime advocate of smoke-free workplaces, also welcomes the new legislation. Ms.Crowe never smoked a day in her life, but spent her career working as a waitress. She is now dying from lung cancer - a result of her exposure to second-hand smoke.

\"I am delighted that smoking will now be banned in all public places in New Brunswick and Manitoba,\" said Ms.Crowe, who has been featured in Health Canada’s advertisements promoting smoke-free workplaces. \"I think this is a huge step forward for health and safety in the workplace.\"

Every year, more than 45,000 Canadians die from disease or illness caused by using tobacco, and at least 1,000 of those are non-smokers. Cigarette smoke is the number one cause of visible indoor air pollution and second-hand smoke exposes people to cancer-causing pollutants. The financial costs associated with employee smoking are also significant. The most recent conservative estimates from 1995 show annual costs per smoking employee can be up to $2,565 per year due to increased absenteeism, decreased productivity, increased life insurance premiums, and smoking area costs. The most recent figures from 1991 estimate that smoking costs the Canadian health care system approximately $3.5 billion every year.

The primary mission of the Federal Tobacco Control Strategy (FTCS) is to reduce disease and death due to tobacco among Canadians. It recognizes that the key to success is comprehensive, integrated and sustained action, carried out in collaboration with all partners and directed at Canadians of all ages. Federal, provincial and territorial Ministers of Health are committed to working together to reduce tobacco consumption in Canada.

Health Canada has developed several resources to help workplaces go smoke-free, including Smoke-free Public Places: You Can Get There and Towards a Healthier Workplace: A Guidebook on Tobacco Control Policies. The Smoke-free Public Places toolkit offers hands-on, easy-to-use resources to help municipalities and communities through the various stages of planning, implementing and evaluating non-smoking by-laws and policies in public places. The Guidebook is designed to help employees and employers who are preparing to create or strengthen tobacco control policies in their workplace. These and other resources on second-hand smoke and help on how to quit smoking can be found at: www.GoSmokefree.ca or by calling 1 800 O-Canada (1 800-622-6232).

Media Inquiries:
Margot Geduld/Carole Saindon
Health Canada
(613) 957-1588

Adle Blanchard
Office of the Minister of Health
(613) 957-0200Public Inquiries:(613) 957-2991