Cigarettes will cost more from Thursday, due to the government’s increase in the specific tax on tobacco products.
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The tobacco tax will increase from $29.80 per carton of 200 cigarettes to $37.80, an increase of $8.
“The cost of smoking in Quebec is around $3.8 billion annually. So it is certain that the recommendation of public health continues to be that the best deterrent for tobacco is taxation, ”said the Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, in the corridors of parliament on Wednesday morning.
Mr. Dubé reiterated the government’s objective of reducing the smoking rate to 10% by 2025. “Quebec has reached approximately 13% of people who smoke. This is still a significant decrease for several years. We still have our goal of reducing up to 10%. And the measure we announced today is exactly in that direction.
The other objective of this increase is to “minimize the impact of tobacco smuggling activities”, underlined the Minister of Finance, Éric Girard.
The tax rate thus increases by 4 cents per cigarette, from 14.9 cents to 18.9 cents.
“This increase should make it possible to reduce the number of tobacco users in Quebec, particularly among young people,” said the office of the Minister of Finance in a press release.
Save lives
The Quebec coalition for tobacco control believes that the government’s decision to raise this tax “will save countless lives.”
“There is no more effective measure than taxation to reduce tobacco use, which kills more than half of regular smokers,” Coalition spokesperson Flory Ducas said in a press release.
According to Ms. Ducas, an increase of this magnitude will deter many young people from taking up smoking, and will motivate smokers to quit.
“We hope that this increase is only the beginning of a broader policy aimed at reaching, at a minimum, the level of tobacco tax in Ontario, the province with the second lowest tax rate in the country. and whose tax exceeds that of Quebec by more than $7 despite the increase announced today,” added Ms.me Leaders
The lowest tax in the country
Price of a carton of 200 cigarettes, taxes included:
- Quebec: $130.92 ($37.80 tax)
- Ontario: 139.94$ (46.86$ of taxes)
- Alberta: $148.98 (55$ tax)
- Saskatchewan: 160,83$ (66,69$ de taxes)
- British Columbia: $170.11 ($75.63 tax)
Source: Quebec Ministry of Finance