It was announced today that a law has just been passed in France to ban smoking in public places. Unfortunately, in restaurants and cafes this will not go into effect until January 2008. In other public places, including work places, the law will go into effect in February 2007. The violations include a fine of 68 euros (about $87 US) for individuals who break the law and 135 euros (about $173 US) for proprietors who allow someone to smoke at their place of business. A publicity campaign is also kicking off to inform people in more detail about the harmful effects of second hand smoke. The emphasis will be on trying to convince people not to smoke in public places and helping them quit rather than relying on fines and other enforcement measures.
For those of us who spend a fair amount of time in French restaurants, it is a shame we’ll have to wait until 2008 for the smoking ban to take effect there, but at least we know it is finally coming. To be honest, I never thought it would. It will also be interesting to see if people actually follow the rules that are in place or simply just go ahead and smoke.
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