France to Ban Smoking in Public Places, Including Parks, Beaches, from July

France will ban smoking in all out-door places that can be accessed by children, including beaches, parks and bus stops, the health and family minister announced Thursday.

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Famed as a country where smokers linger over cigarettes on cafe terraces or strolling down cobblestone streets, France has increasingly tightened restrictions on tobacco use in public spaces in recent years. The new ban, which will enter into force on July 1, will cover all spaces where children could be present, including “beaches, parks, public gardens, outside of schools, bus stops and sports venues”, said the minister Catherine Vautrin. “Tobacco must disappear where there are children,” Vautrin said in an inter-