I’m Heidi Rathjen from the Quebec Coalition for Tobacco Control and have had the privilege to meet and work along side Neil since the late 90s.

Before I begin, I would simply like to express my sympathies as well as those of my colleague, Flory Doucas, to Neil’s wife, Barbara his partner in in life, to his children about whom he spoke with enormous pride, and to all of his big and much-loved family of brothers and sisters, grandchildren, nieces, nephews and in-laws.

Our thoughts also go out to Cynthia Callard from Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, who was lucky enough to work alongside this amazing colleague and close friend for the last 25 years.

Les mots ne peuvent rendre justice à l’homme d’intégrité et d’honneur que Neil incarnait, un homme tellement persévérant et intelligent. Afin de parvenir à vous faire part, de façon succincte, de l’envergure des accomplissements et des rôles de Neil dont le leadership était souvent discret, permettez-moi de poursuivre uniquement en anglais.

Words can do no justice to the extent of Neil’s integrity and honor. In addition to having a generally absolutely positive personality, what many of us came to appreciate is Neil’s humility and perseverance, and his quiet leadership.

As you have read in some news stories and as many of us know first-hand, Neil is resoundingly one of the world’s greatest tobacco control heroes. His contribution to tobacco control began through his work as a civil servant in Health Canada in the 1980s.

He would join Health Canada during the lull that followed the failed efforts of the department to convert the recommendations of the 1968 Isabelle Commission report into legislative controls on the industry.

In the early 1980s he moved to the department’s tiny tobacco control unit where he helped drum up support for a new national strategy that included a legislative foundation for tobacco control efforts.

By 1986, Neil found himself at the centre of the landmark parliamentary review of Canada’s first two tobacco control laws. The Non-Smokers Health Act was a private member’s bill aimed at making federally regulated places smoke-free and limit smoking on aircraft, ships and trains. The act would also modify other laws introducing warning on packs.

Many of these measures would end up being beefed-up through subsequent federal and provincial laws, as was his initial encounter with Cynthia Callard, who then worked for the parliamentarian involved in Non-smokers’ Health Act.

Later on, while still at Health Canada, Neil’s leadership and skillset was put to good use as he advised and worked, over two years, across departments and political parties with the parliamentary health committee that would produce the pioneering and consensual piece of legislation which for the first time in Canada’s history would reign-in many tobacco industry practices.

Indeed, Neil, along with other distinguished civil servants like Murray Kaiserman and Byron Rogers, crafted the 1989 Tobacco Products Control Act (TPCA), which prohibited tobacco advertising, required health warnings on tobacco packaging, and restricted promotional activities.

If you want to know more about his period, you can do no better than to read Rob Cunningham’s book that relates the history of that period: it’s called Smoke and Mirrors is available at a website near you.

My guess is that there were plenty of missed or late dinners in the Collishaw household at that time – and I hope that Barbara and family know that we are all grateful for their sacrifice.

Then, in the early 90s, folks at the World Health Organization took notice of the groundbreaking efforts that were taking in place in Canada and recruited Neil to encourage other countries to do the same.

Neil’s kindness, open-mindedness, thoroughness and experience with NGOs would prove in handy as he looked to encourage and empower governments from the former Eastern block to resist and tackle the tobacco industry sights on these emerging economies.

I was part of two of these summits, both around 2002, one in Ukraine (in the majestic city of Kiev) and one in Slovenia (in a beautiful town called Bled).

It was in Kiev that I really got to know Neil for the first time. I was very honoured to be invited to make presentations and take part in exchanges on coalition building with Ukrainian government and NGO representatives and those from other countries like Poland.  

At first I was a little intimidated by Neil, with his big title and important role at the WHO, but as everyone who knows Neil could have predicted, he made me feel so welcomed and valued, like he did for everyone, that before I knew it Neil, Cynthia, and I were walking and laughing through the streets of this beautiful city while taking pictures of all the tobacco billboards and the Lucky Strike logos on all the public transit buses.

Going back to 1994, Neil and others arranged for a resolution in support of an international tobacco control treaty at the World Tobacco or Health international conference in Paris.

So while at the WHO, Neil also set to work to convince the lawyers, directors, Executive Body and Health Assembly to turn this idea into reality.

Yes, it was Neil set the vision and broke the ground for the Framework Convention Tobacco Control Treaty, that has now 183 Parties covering more than 90% of the world population.

At the turn of the century, feeling pushed aside before the treaty was finalized (by none other than the person who led Philip Morris’ Foundation for a Smoke-Free World), Neil returned to Canada where he joined Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada.

There he joined Cynthia and was able to continue his important contributions to tobacco control both in Canada and internationally.

To this day, Neil’s contribution to tobacco control efforts in Europe remain remembered and cherished, and it’s with great pride that I can tell you he will be receiving an award next week at the European Conference on Tobacco Control in Athens from the European Network for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention.

After joining Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, Neil has been an invaluable advisor and expert public health witness in numerous litigation cases pitting governments and victims against tobacco companies.

He also continued to lead and be a pioneer in many other respects.

He has played a crucial role in conveying the science to the masses, including the way the industry manipulates nicotine and tar concentration in tobacco smoke.

He also exposed governmental mistakes like Canada’s faulty tobacco transition program that, instead of helping tobacco farmers exit the industry, was transformed into a public subsidy for continued tobacco growing.

In recent years, Neil was also one of the strongest voices on the need for governments to raise awareness regarding the link between smoking and breast cancer.

Neil left behind a legacy that secured gains and provides inspiration to build upon.

After he announced his diagnosis to his friends and colleagues over a year and a half ago, Neil followed this up with a manifesto to encourage all of us to ramp up our efforts against the industry’s new generation of nicotine products: electronic cigarettes.

Here are some passages that show how this soft-spoken fighter was determined to help continue the fight against corporate greed and weak public policy:

QUOTE: “To truly end the tobacco and vaping epidemics, we have to attack the tobacco and vaping industries and we have to win.  If we are to deal with this venomous creature, chasing tails will no longer suffice. We have to cut off the head of the snake. …

“Public health advocates around the world need step up their game to create that public outcry. … To end the tobacco and nicotine epidemics, we need to attack the very heart of the tobacco and vaping industries.

“My time and ability to contribute to such an effort are coming to an end. I ask you – please – to take up this fight. The time to act is now. Do not let these industry-caused tobacco and vaping epidemics continue.” END QUOTE

Unbeknownst to many Canadians, the country as a whole has benefited from the work and integrity of this principled man whose unaverred concern for the public’s interest embodied the ongoing fight against the deadliest consumer product in history.

Neil’s intelligence was matched only by his devotion to the cause, and his kindness only by his good humour. 

Through our roles at the Quebec Coalition for Tobacco Control, we have been honoured and privileged to worked along side this great man, both professionally and personally.

Farewell, dearest Neil, you will remain in our hearts and memories forever… 

Heidi Rathjen