France formally banned smoking in beaches, parks, and other public outdoor spaces.
The country’s tobacco-loving reputation is outdated: Paris implemented smoking restrictions early, barring cigarettes on public transport back in 1976, and cigarette consumption peaked in 1985. Smoking is now banned in all indoor public spaces and fewer than 25% of French adults smoke daily, a record low.
The new ban is explicitly intended to protect children from secondhand smoke, part of a wider global trend toward protectiveness, as age restrictions come into place on porn and social media. It is another nail in the coffin of the image of the turtleneck-wearing French existentialist mumbling wearily around a Gauloise: “What do we have left?” one shopkeeper grumbled to Euronews. “Kale smoothies?”