Enforcement

Legislation can be an effective tool for tobacco control; however, unless laws are enforced, they cannot serve their intended purpose. Despite the importance of enforcement, many people are uncertain of whom to contact when they know the law is being broken or when they want to know their rights.

If you have a particular question about provincial or federal law, first please consult the appropriate section (i.e. promotion, packaging, and products; manufacturers and distributors; point of sale; smoking) of the Canadian Law and Tobacco Database. Then if you cannot find an answer to your question or if you would like to report, for example, a violation of a provincial law, please contact the appropriate person listed under your province in the enforcement section. Although these contacts may not have all of the answers, they will be able to guide you to appropriate sources for further information.

If you cannot determine which level of government is responsible for the legislation or regulation in question, please communicate with the contact listed under your province of the enforcement section who will be able to tell you if the law is either provincial or federal.

The contacts listed in the enforcement section may be able to answer a variety of questions, including:

• Despite no-smoking laws, some of my colleagues continue to smoke at work. Whom should I contact about this problem?
• I know that the store on my street sells cigarettes to minors. Is there anyway to make them stop?
• My neighbours smoke and their smoke comes into my apartment/condominium. Are there any measures that I can take to protect myself from this health hazard?
• I would like to create a new no-smoking law or by-law in my workplace/community. Where is a good place to get further information?

If you have any further questions about how to use this section, please contact our information officer at info-services@cctc.ca.