Good evening.
In our submission to this committee last year, we pointed out that with the aging population a tsunami of cancer will hit us. Cancer will become the greatest single cause of premature death by the year 2010. Cancer in the workforce will more than double over the next 30 years, resulting in staggering losses of tax revenues and wage-based productivity. We therefore thank the members of this committee for support for the Canadian strategy for cancer control.
The federal government is committed to addressing the cancer challenge and has pledged to implement the Canadian strategy for cancer control as set out in the May 2006 federal budget with the full funding of $260 million over five years, so thank you.
There is more that Parliament can do to ensure the good health of Canadians and promote productivity and competitiveness in our economy. A case in point is tobacco control. Higher tobacco taxes are an important means of not only reducing smoking, especially among price-sensitive teenagers, but also raising revenue for government. The dramatic onset of price discounting by tobacco manufacturers in the last three years has resulted in a price decrease of about $10 to $20 per carton for more than 40% of the market.
A tobacco tax increase now would respond to these legally sold discount cigarettes to mitigate potential adverse impacts on smoking rates. There has not been a net increase in federal tobacco taxes since June 2002.
So the Canadian Cancer Society recommends that federal tobacco taxes be increased by $10 per carton of 200 cigarettes; that the government close the loophole allowing roll-your-own tobacco and tobacco sticks to be taxed at a lower rate than cigarettes; that any future decreases in GST be accompanied by the small upwards adjustment in tobacco taxes necessary to ensure there's no price decrease to consumers; that stronger contraband prevention measures be implemented; and that the Canadian government urge the U.S. government to shut down the illegal manufacturing operations on the U.S. side of the Akwesasne reserve, which the RCMP has estimated is the source of 90% of the contraband entering Canada.
We strongly oppose the cuts that have been made to Health Canada's tobacco control program. Health Canada's tobacco control budget is only about $48 million in the current fiscal year, down from what was to have been a $110-million-a-year program. Why on earth would cuts be made to a Health Canada program that is working? Why have there been cuts to the successive anti-smoking TV ads? This makes no sense.
We recommend that a mass media campaign resume on a priority basis. The CCS--that's us, the cancer society--is concerned about the recent elimination of the first nations and Inuit tobacco control strategy. The government says it intends to implement a replacement program, which we look forward to seeing.
Finally, I want to draw your attention to a research issue. A continued public investment in health research is important for a competitive advantage in today's global economy. Health charities contribute $150 million a year to health research. The federal indirect costs of research program, ICP, unfairly penalizes national health charities and the millions of Canadians who donate to them every year. Currently, the federal government provides approximately 24ยข towards the indirect costs of research for every dollar that is allocated by a federal granting council to a university or research hospital for the direct costs of research. In contrast, research funded by national health charities does not benefit from the ICP. We recommend that health charities be included in the federal indirect costs of research program.
Thank you.