'w v 4 - The Canadian Champion, Tuesday, January 19, 1999 7f E-* . : mi Bulit in Canada to endure our harsh Canadian winters. 50G Covereci by a fl 95 Pm %ld nationwide warranty most car from 9 installed Ail Se ma dil fR O M Of H o f ,R W f o n ý r â OutlneWhMe LetteL 'ZA5 FrLUoTrucks and SUV's $99» Rtt(5LU Milton tops pack keeping the cigarette selling rules By IRENE GENTLE The Champion Rebel retailers may be the smoking gun in thse provincial Tobacco Control Act, Halton Region's health and social services committee heard last wcck. In Oakville, a startling 31 per cent of retailers wcre willing to sell cigarettes to four underage buyers, one as young as 15 years old, according to a report by Halton's medical officer of health, Dr. Robent Nosal. T'Me minora were hired by the health department st June. They were to attempt to buy amokes from retail- ers acrosa the region to monitor compliance with anti- smoking legialation. T'Me Tobacco Control Act makes it an offence to seil cigarettes to anyone under age 19. Ninety retailers monitored 0f the 480 tobacco retailers in Halton, 90 were monitored for the survey. That's broken down to 30 Iindividual retailers in Burlington, 32 in Oakville, 15 in IMilton, and 13 in Halton iEl. Overaîl, 16 per cent of thse 90 Halton retailers sain- pIed proved they wcre willing to seil amokes to minora. 'Mat's down from 21 per cent in 1997 and 29 per cent in 1996. It also beats thc 1998 provincc-widc average of 26 percent. Oakvillc had the bighcst perccntage of non-compli- ance in the region, followed by Acton, whcre 28 per cent of sampled retailera were willing to selI amokes to the youthful hired guns. That's up slightly from thc 1991%sult of 25 per cent. In Georgetown, not one of thse six retailers sanspled was willing to selI to Uic minora. lIn 1997 18 per cent of those surveyed failed thse test. Milton wins the prize for the moat drastic retail reha- bilitation, dropping from a whopping 50 per cent in 1997 to juat six percent in 1998. Burlington retailers also clocked in at six per cent, dropping from 15 per cent in 1997. Enforcement could be the key to smoking out dissi- dent cigarette dispensers. In 1997, 24 retailers, were ticketed in Halton. 'Mat breaks down to five in Oakville, four in Georgetown and three in Acton. In Burlington, 12 retailers were ticketed for selling to, minora in 1997. Two of them were nailed for multi- ple offences. No retailers in Milton were ticketed. Though the penalty for a firat offence is a fine up to $5,000, in reality it is more likely to be in the $200 range, said Dr. Nosal. A second offence cardes the much more serious penalty of a six month ban from selling smokes. Oakville counicilors outraged Oakville's high rate of retail rebellion caused a rip- pie of outrage at the committee levet, with Oakville Councillor Kurt Franklin demanding that the 1999 survey be revamped to show juat wbich types of retail- ers are thse real tobacco villains. ."la it more convenience stores, or is it gas stations?" hie asked. With the guilty parties clearly identified, council could apply pressure at the bead office level or tbrough thse media, he suggested. Got a hot scoop? Hot off the press Cal! our newsroom at H at ietr u 878-2341. lat ie or ou ZNW-Ol ý ý m om Choices 4 Health, Halton's Heart Health and Cancer Risk Reduction Network, bas created a directory that pmovides infor- mation about services and resources available. Includcd are listings of programa, reaources, contact naines and «~ telephone nmes 7? To receive a copy of this free manual, contact the Halton Regional Health Departmnent at 825-6060, ext. 7489. 05-1-29