Model Legislation for Tobacco Control: A policy development

INTRODUCTION TO THE MANUAL
On the other hand, constitutional guarantees of free speech in Canada
and the United States have been interpreted by their courts as elevating
corporate interests over human rights, limiting how far the government can
go with regulation of tobacco advertising. 4,5 This is not the case in the rest
of the world. In most countries that have banned tobacco advertising,
there have been no constitutional problems. Regardless, the tobacco industry
has raised and can be expected to continue to raise the threat of legal
challenges based upon supposed free commercial speech rights.
Finally, where legislative provisions for tobacco control already exist
in the country, these should be evaluated to determine how well they have
been working. If weaknesses are found, amendments will need to be made.
It may be easier to repeal and replace existing legislation that will need to
be strengthened substantially than to make extensive amendments.
The Importance of Other Programming Components
to Complement Tobacco Control Policy and Regulation
■ While comprehensive regulation, including enforcement of legal
provisions, is central to tobacco control, it needs to be accompanied by
complementary programs and activities. Ongoing surveillance is necessary
to understand the extent of tobacco use and exposure, as well as the resulting
morbidity and mortality and their costs. These data allow tobacco control
professionals to make the case for necessary interventions and to tailor
programs to populations’ needs. Surveillance data also can provide measures
by which tobacco control programs can be evaluated, among other things.
Surveillance data can and should be used to examine the effectiveness
of regulatory measures, including whether any disparities in the level
of protection afforded by programs and regulatory interventions exist
among population groups. For example, in the absence of a complete ban
on smoking in all public places, including workplaces, if any particular
population groups (e.g., those of low socio-economic status) are found
to be more exposed to tobacco smoke than others, as might be expected
to be the case (See Part 6: Protection from Tobacco Smoke), it will be
important to enact remedial measures.
Public awareness and education programs, and other communications
activities, can be effective in reducing tobacco consumption and garnering
support for tobacco control measures. 6 As regulatory interventions
encourage tobacco users to try to quit, tobacco use cessation programs
become especially important. Public awareness, education, and cessation
programs can be implemented in the absence of a legislative directive;
however, a legislative mandate for these “can provide a powerful
expression of governmental policy, assurance that implementation will
occur with some consistency, and of course, financial resources needed
to support these efforts.” 7 For these reasons, provisions for public
awareness and education and cessation programs, and their funding,
are included in the Manual.
12 MODEL TOBACCO CONTROL LEGISLATION: A POLICY DEVELOPMENT AND LEGISLATIVE DRAFTING MANUAL