Nova Scotia's Ban On Smoking Inside Car Takes Effect April 1

Halifax, Canada (AHN) - Beginning Tuesday, Nova Scotia's Smoke-free Places Act becomes effective, making it illegal to smoke inside a vehicle if there is someone inside below 19. The amendment applies even to young solo smokers alone in the vehicle.

Violators would be fined $387.79 (394.50 Canadian dollar). Some young Canadians are against the smoking ban. Mitch Baird, 18, from Bible Hill, and a smoker, told Metro Halifax, "I think it's dumb... You should be allowed to smoke if you want to."

In defense of the law to take effect on April Fool's day, Health Promotion and Protection Minister Barry Barnet said, "It isn't so much about issuing tickets or penalizing drivers, it's more about bringing awareness to drivers that there is a serious public health issue."

While there is an expected resistance against the new anti-smoking measure, some young Canadians are supporting it. At the Courtice Secondary School in Ontario, a student established the Smoker's Help club to assist schoolmates drop the habit. The organization of high school students has 20 members and more are being added daily.

Laina Andrews, principal of Courtice Secondary School, supports the club. She told the Toronto Star, "If we could get every high school in our board to get 20 kids to stop smoking, that would be almost 400 kids and that to me is a real dent on who's dying from smoking." Andrews added, "It breaks my heart to see a kid smoking... They are the most knowledgeable generation that's ever been on the downside of smoking, yet they still smoke. Why? Well, part of is is because nobody cares to help them stop."