Smoking in France was first restricted on public transport by the 1976 Veil law. Further restrictions were established in the 1991
Évin law, which contains a variety of measures against
alcoholism
Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...
and
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
consumption. A much stronger
smoking ban
Smoking bans, or smoke-free laws, are public policies, including criminal laws and occupational safety and health regulations, that prohibit tobacco smoking in certain spaces. The spaces most commonly affected by smoking bans are indoor workpl ...
was introduced on 1 February 2007. Smoking in enclosed public places such as offices,
schools
A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compulsor ...
,
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...
buildings and restaurants is strictly prohibited. Law officials may enforce the laws with minimum fines set at €500.
History
The Veil law is named after
Simone Veil
Simone Veil (; ; 13 July 1927 – 30 June 2017) was a French magistrate and politician who served as Health Minister in several governments and was President of the European Parliament from 1979 to 1982, the first woman to hold that office. ...
, the French health minister, who took an initiative to fight against tobacco smoking in France in 1976. Veil banned advertising for tobacco or tobacco products and required tobacco companies to print severe warnings on their cigarette packages, such as "''Abus Dangereux'' –
veruse is Hazardous" Another significant aspect of the Veil Law was to place limitations on smoking places ''affectés à un usage collectif'' (open to the public).
The Évin law is named after
Claude Évin, the minister who pushed for it. The law leaves certain important criteria on what is allowed or not with respect to smoking sections to executive-issued regulations, and it is those regulations that were altered in 2007.
A legal challenge against the new regulations was filed before the
Conseil d'État in 2007, but was rejected.
Ruling of 19 March 2007
of the Conseil d'État
copy
on Légifrance Légifrance is the official website of the French government for the publication of legislation, regulations, and legal information. Access to the site is free.
Virtually complete, it presents or refers to all concerned institutions or administrat ...
) Under the initial implementation rules of the 1991 Évin law, restaurants, cafés etc. just had to provide smoking and non-smoking sections, which in practice were often not well separated. In larger establishments, smoking and non-smoking sections could be separate rooms, but often they were just areas within the same room.
Current status
Smoking and vaping are banned in all indoor public places (government buildings, offices, public transport, universities, museums, restaurants, cafés, nightclubs, etc.). Cafés and shops selling tobacco-related products are submitted to the same regulations. No exceptions exist for special smoking rooms fulfilling strict conditions.
Additionally, some outdoor public places also ban smoking and vaping (railway stations).
As of 2015, 32% of French adults declare themselves to be regular smokers.
In case of violation of tobacco laws, the smoker can face a fine of up to €450 and the owner of the venue up to €750.
Plain packaging for cigarettes was introduced in 2017.
See also
* Plain tobacco packaging
Plain tobacco packaging, also known as generic, neutral, standardised or homogeneous packaging, is packaging of tobacco products, typically cigarettes, without any branding (colours, imagery, corporate logos and trademarks), including only the b ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smoking In France
French culture