France moves to ban smoking in public places from July 1

France will ban smoking in all outdoor places that can be accessed by children, including beaches, parks and bus stops, the health and family minister announced Thursday, May 29. 

France has increasingly tightened restrictions on tobacco use in public spaces in recent years. 

The new ban, which will enter into force on July 1, will cover all spaces where children could be present, including “beaches, parks, public gardens, outside of schools, bus stops and sports venues,” the minister Catherine Vautrin said. 

“Tobacco must disappear where there are children,” Vautrin said in an interview published by the regional Ouest-France daily on its website. 

The freedom to smoke “stops where children’s right to breathe clean air starts”, she said. 

The ban will also extend to schools, to stop students smoking in front of them.
Offenders face a fine of up to €135 ($154), Vautrin said. 

The ban will not extend to France’s iconic cafe terraces however, the minister said. 

Electronic cigarettes, which have boomed in France in recent years, are also not covered. 

France already forbids smoking in public spaces such as workplaces, airports and train stations, as well as playgrounds. 

Anti-smoking groups had been fighting for a broader ban. 

An estimated 35 percent of France’s population are smokers – higher than the averages for Europe (25 percent) and the world (21 percent), according to the World Health Organization.