Canada to lose lead in fight against smoking

In late September, Health Canada decided to nix a new series of mandatory cigarette package warning labels that would include more graphic depictions of the side effects smoking can induce. After seven years of government-funded research, the goal of motivating smokers to end their deadly habit has ground to a halt, leaving many health advocates reeling.
“It’s incomprehensible,” said Michael Perley, director of the Ontario Campaign for Action on Tobacco. “There’s no doubt that they need refreshing. They’ve been seen thousands of times by every smoker, and the idea is to make them a larger part of the package face and to bring new harder hitting messages, which are really necessary.”