Smoking rates stable: StatsCan

About 18 per cent of Canadians said they smoked either every day or occasionally last year, which is about the same as in 2005, Statistics Canada reported Thursday.

The fact that the percentage has stayed the same raises concerns about the slowing of the decline in smoking, said Rob Cunningham, a senior policy analyst for the Canadian Cancer Society.

Cunningham blamed the widespread availability of contraband cigarettes.

"These cheap cigarettes, which may be 80 to 90 per cent off, are having an adverse impact on how fast smoking rates are declining," Cunningham said in an interview with the Canadian Press from Ottawa.

Contraband tobacco sells for as little as $6 for 200 cigarettes, the Canadian Cancer Society said.

Close to a third, 28 per cent, of current smokers in Ontario reported they had recently bought at least one pack of contraband cigarettes in the last six months prior to a 2007/2008 survey by the Ontario Tobacco Research Unit.

"Cheap cigarettes entice young people to start smoking and discourage smokers from quitting," Susan Whelan, CEO of the Canadian Cancer Society's Ontario Division, said in a release.

The annual Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey of 20,000 people also suggested that the smoking rate for women aged 25 and older dropped from 18 per cent in 2007 to 15 per cent last year.

Banning flavoured cigarillos

Smoking prevalence among Canadians 25 and older dropped from 19 per cent in 2007 to 17 per cent in 2008.

Nearly half (48 per cent) of adults aged 20 to 24 and just under one-third (31 per cent) of teens aged 15 to 19 reported ever having tried little cigars or cigarillos, another area of concern for Cunningham.

The little cigars come in flavours such as peach and candy, and came on the market in the last 10 years or so, he said.

In the 30 days before they were surveyed, 12 per cent of those aged 20 to 24 and nine per cent for 15 to 19 year olds said they smoked a little cigar or cigarillo.

A bill to ban little cigars and cigarillos is before the Senate.