MLA idea about selling cigarettes in liquor bars isn’t so good

Published on Wed, 30 May 2007 2:05 pm

An Edmonton Tory MLA, Thomas Lukaszuk, wants to see cigarettes banned from Alberta's convenience stores and sell them only in liquor stores and bars.

Lukaszuk motivated its idea in following way: ”If the goal is to reduce tobacco use — particularly among young people — then cigarettes should be harder to buy”.

He added that most smokers usually attend liquor stores and it nothing out of ordinary fro them to buy cigarettes from these locals: “Liquor stores are really prolific now, they are like convenience stores and they’re on every corner since they've been privatized. So it would not create any hardship to Albertans having to go to a liquor store to pick up cigarettes.”

As it was sustained buy one representative of Canadian Federation of Independent Business it isn't a good idea. Danielle Smith is worried that this challenge can result the closing for convenience stores. She said: “Cigarette sales make up about 40 per cent of the sales for some owners and moving tobacco to liquor stores would force those stores to shut down.”

Maybe, in a way it is a partial resolution for anti-tobacco policy, but it cannot be excluded fact that it can hard touch the stores and its businesses entirely. Banning sale of cigarettes in convenience shops can result banning of all products of products that are sold in locals.