Ontario 2025 Budget to tackle contraband tobacco
Yesterday, the Ontario government unveiled it new 2025 budget, the first since the provincial conservatives under Premier Doug Ford won a majority in the February election.
Minister of Finance Peter Bethlenfalvy released the 2025 Ontario Budget: A Plan to Protect Ontario, which included various measures to protect Ontario workers, businesses and jobs in the face of U.S. tariffs and continued economic uncertainty.
"Our government is delivering on our mandate to protect Ontario and help workers and businesses weather the storm, while creating the long-term foundations for a strong, resilient and competitive economy," said Minister Bethlenfalvy. "We’re making the investments in workers, infrastructure and services that will protect Ontario, no matter what."
Included in the 2025 Budget are additional measures the province will take to tackle the problem of contraband tobacco which the government’s budget document says, “impacts public safety through links to organized crime and negatively impacts Ontario’s revenue integrity."
READ: Online marketplaces helping drive contraband tobacco sales
According to a report by Ernst and Young and commissioned by the Convenience Industry Council of Canada (CICC), a growing number of online websites sell and deliver contraband cigarettes anywhere in Canada in violation of Canadian laws. The products often include age and health warnings that mirror past Health Canada requirements on labelling to give an air of legitimacy. Some websites even offer volume discounts for more than one carton purchased.
In the 2024 Budget, the government strengthened fines for the possession of contraband cigarettes and fine-cut tobacco.
In this budget, the government says it will be “building on these changes, the government is proposing to extend that approach to contraband cigars and other tobacco products (e.g., pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco), while also strengthening fines for other offences under the Tobacco Tax Act (TTA).”
“Renewing and strengthening the Ministry of Finance’s partnership with the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) for the Contraband Tobacco Enforcement Team (CTET) is an important lever in tackling the links between contraband tobacco and organized crime. The government is continuing to invest in CTET, further integrate the ministry’s investigations team and OPP resources, and focus on the intersection points between contraband tobacco and other illegal commodities.”
Ontario is calling on the federal government to work with provinces and territories to explore strategies to address what it calls a national problem.
"It is encouraging to see that the Ford government is acknowledging that the fight against contraband tobacco is essential to the safety and wellbeing of communities across the province", said Eric Gagnon, vice-president of corporate and regulatory affairs at Imperial Tobacco Canada. "We thank the province for their leadership on this important file and look forward to working together to combat contraband tobacco, undermine organized crime and keep people safe."
