ANTI-DRUG TV ADS TO FEATURE CHILDREN

Ottawa -- The Conservative government is spending $3.25-million on new
ads that urge parents to talk to their children about narcotics.

Health Minister Tony Clement said all the recent talk about marijuana
decriminalization has left children confused about the dangers of drugs.

"I can tell you that it is my fervent hope that fewer and fewer young
people will get caught up in the maelstrom of drugs and addiction in
the years ahead," Mr. Clement said.

"As Minister of Health but, perhaps more importantly as a father
myself, I'm deeply troubled by the prevalence of drug use among our
country's young people."

So for the first time in two decades, the federal government will fund
anti-drug ads on TV. They will closely resemble recent radio and print
ads that cost $3.5-million, and show young children referring to a
variety of drugs by their commonly used street names.

The TV ads conclude with a warning to parents:

"Learn the language, before your kids do."