Via bloomberg.com -
Jan. 31 (Bloomberg) -- France, the land of Gauloises cigarettes and haze-filled cafes, is banning smoking in public places starting tomorrow.
More than 15 years after the country began trying to curb tobacco consumption, the first phase of a new law goes into effect, banning smoking in schools, airports, hotels, offices and other public spaces. The second phase next year will prohibit smoking in cafes, restaurants and clubs.
``Nobody, not even I, thought a year-and-a-half ago that France would abandon tobacco so fast,'' said Yves Bur, a member of Parliament and a leading advocate of a broad prohibition of smoking. ``French people are ready. The image of the Gauloise cigarette in the cafe is almost dead.''
The curbs mirror moves in Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain, with similar bans planned in the England and being debated in Germany. For France, the prohibition reflects efforts to curtail a habit that kills 60,000 people annually, according to the health ministry. It also comes as the government struggles to narrow the public health-care deficit, which was 6.5 billion euros ($8.4 billion) in 2005.
Over 30 percent of the French population smokes, more than in any European country except Greece, where it's 42 percent, a French legislative commission report from last October showed.
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Man, I was just there in mid 2006 and I have to say...I didn't think they would do it either.
Everyone smokes everywhere in France...well in Paris anyways.
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