FRANCE has always been a holiday favourite for Brits and continues to be one – but there is a new strict rule to look out for.
And its already been rolled out across the country and could see you fined £116 on the beach this summer.
France has always been a holiday favourite for Brits and continues to be one – but there is a new strict rule to look out for[/caption]
The new French rules
Smoking cigarettes is banned in all outdoor areas where children might frequent[/caption]
France has banned smoking in all outdoor areas frequented by children from the 1st of July.
This includes parks, beaches, public gardens, bus stops, school entrances, and sports venues.
And if you break the rule – even as a tourist – you will face a fine of 90 euros if you pay within 15 days, going up to 135 euros (around £116) after that.
The new measure is part of President Emmanuel Macron’s pledge to create “the first tobacco-free generation” by 2032.
“France is positioning itself as one of Europe’s most proactive countries in terms of tobacco control,” Raquel Venâncio, senior policy officer at Smoke Free Partnership, a coalition of European tobacco control advocacy groups, told CNN.
Not everyone in France is happy about the new rule
Not everyone in France is happy about the new rule[/caption]
“The more time goes by, the more the government wants to take away our basic freedoms,” Elise Levaux, a 25-year-old student in Paris, told CNN.
“If you’re being respectful — not throwing away cigarette butts in a park or beach, not disturbing others — I don’t see the problem.
“Why should smoking suddenly be treated like a crime?”
Another said: “I’ve been smoking since I was 14.
“Most of my friends started just as young. Fine or no fine, we’re going to continue smoking.
“It’s part of the French identity — we fight for what we want. We’re not robots.”
France has almost 23,000 licensed tabacs — tobacco shops that occupy the corners of many urban streets.
CNN approached a dozen of them in Paris seeking their view on the new law, but none wanted to speak.
But in a statement shared with CNN, Minister of Health Catherine Vautrin said that “protecting youth and denormalizing smoking” is an “absolute priority” for the government.
“At 17, you should be building your future, not your addiction, Where there are children, tobacco must disappear.
“Tobacco is poison. It kills, it costs, it pollutes. I refuse to give up the fight. Every day without tobacco is a life gained.
“Our goal is clear: a tobacco-free generation — and we have the means to achieve it.”
The new rule does not ban e-cigarettes
Unlike Belgium and the United Kingdom, which recently prohibited the sale of disposable vapes, France’s new rules do not ban e-cigarettes reports Accuweather.
The new regulations do, however, include a reduction in authorized nicotine levels in vaping products, as well as strict limits on flavours like cotton candy, which critics say are designed to appeal to young people.
“These products serve as gateways to addiction and will be regulated, starting in 2026,” Vautrin said.
Tobacco use remains the leading preventable health risk in the European Union, causing nearly 700,000 premature deaths each year, according to EU figures.
In France alone, it accounts for 75,000 deaths each year — equivalent to 200 deaths per day, according to the country’s health ministry.
Beyond the direct toll on smokers and those around them, tobacco products also pose an environmental hazard.
An estimated 20,000 to 25,000 tons of cigarette butts are discarded across France each year, according to the Ministry of Health.
