Breathe Easy Muskoka Smoke-Free By-laws

UBM Claims Economic Impact Sales down by 15.9% Tips down by 25% Loss of staff Where did these statistics come from?

Ontario restaurant hotel and motel survey Biased Poor wording Respondents not random Not a neutral scientific body Asks for opinion not actual financial statements

Ottawa economic impact KPMG report Retail sales tax returns Increase in employment in the hospitality industry Bankruptcy and insolvency statistics for restaurants are lower than they have been in the past two years

Court cases 100,000,000 Law suit in Kitchener – Waterloo Case ruled in favour of the municipality because of the Municipal act. Businesses could not prove a negative economic impact due to the by-law

UBM claims by-laws are not working in Toronto and York Need for a level playing field Exempt bars Designated smoking rooms

Keep the current by-laws Many are complaining Survey reveals need for by-law Smoking areas are not protecting health

Staff smoke Second-hand smoke is the most dangerous part of smoking Employees who smoke and are exposed to toxic chemicals from second-hand smoke at work are at great health risk. Chemicals in second-hand smoke from many smokers accumulate and compound to hazardous levels

Health care costs One in five deaths are due to smoking related illnesses Health care costs are estimated at $9,165,128 per year for Muskoka due to smoking Quality of life is affected by tobacco smoke

Provinces recognize the hazard Newfoundland passed a province-wide ban in public places where children frequent B.C. passed a workplace smoking regulation that protects employees from second-hand smoke Nova Scotia’s Premier Hamm will introduce province-wide smoke-free legislation this spring In Dec 99 Quebec enacted bill 444 that restricts smoking in workplaces and restaurants province-wide.

Provinces are not doing enough Municipalities are leading the way By-laws are needed to protect everyone equally Through the Municipal Act – The District of Muskoka has the power to make a difference.

Draft By-law The ad-hoc by-law committee created a draft by-law Protects people in public places and work places. Exempts bingo halls, private clubs and lodgings in hotels, motels and resorts.

Ottawa Sun Poll Conducted by corporate research group 29.5% – one in three residents- are going out to bars and restaurants more often 16.9% are going out less often 53.3% no change

Huge new market Instead of spending time, energy and money battling the bylaw use the resources to tap into a huge market Based on Muskoka population of 150,000 there is the potential of 45,000 new customers

Attracting more business Ottawa may be attracting people from surrounding communities such as Hull who prefer to dine in a smoke-free environment Waterloo has attracted more business to Oktoberfest since it has gone smoke-free

Muskoka a healthy destination Tourist can enjoy the fresh air inside and out. Attract people who are health conscious. It is a whole new market

Focus on the positive Muskoka cares about the health of its citizens Our community will be setting a good example for our children Reduction in health care costs