The Alberta government should increase cigarette taxes by at least $1.50 per pack, while also reinvesting some of that revenue into smoking prevention efforts, a new poll from an anti-tobacco group has found.

The non-random online survey of 1,005 Albertans was conducted by Leger Research for the advocacy coalition Campaign for a Smoke-Free Alberta.

Two-thirds of respondents told the pollster they would support a tax hike of at least $1.50 per pack of 20 cigarettes “to bring our affordability levels in line with neighbouring provinces.”

An even stronger majority, 75 per cent, said they agreed with the idea of reinvesting tax revenue into “effective strategies to help smokers quit and keep youth from starting to use tobacco.”

The anti-smoking coalition said Alberta currently has the most affordable cigarettes in Canada due to suppressed taxes and high wages, while provincial smoking rates remain higher than the national average.

The group said annual government spending on direct programs to reduce tobacco use should be increased to $20 million from $4 million, or roughly two per cent of the revenue collected each year in tobacco taxes.

The province said in a statement it is hoping to make further progress in reducing smoking rates, but is not currently considering any changes to tobacco revenue. The ministry noted taxes were raised by $5 per carton in 2015.

As a non-random Internet survey, a margin of error is not reported. Had the data been collected using a probability sample, it would have a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

kgerein@postmedia.com

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