Tobacco: French people in favour of more restrictions

According to a survey carried out by Ipsos for a tobacco control association, 95% of French people would be in favour of a smoking ban in cars carrying children, and 84% would also like cigarettes to be banned in certain public places such as schools.

Protecting children in vehicles where people smoke

The survey shows once again how far French people want to see the cigarette pushed further out of daily life, particularly where the protection of children is concerned. That is already the case in several countries, among them South Africa, the United States, Canada and Australia, where smoking in vehicles carrying minors and children is already prohibited. Studies report levels of fine particles harmful to the lungs that are ten times higher in the rear seats of a vehicle.

Banning cigarettes near schools

The Ipsos survey also finds that 84% of those questioned would be very well disposed towards a ban on smoking near schools. French people consider it « desirable » that people should be « protected » « in the vicinity of school premises ».
The same view applies to « parks and public gardens intended for children », where 83% of respondents are « in favour » of a ban, and to stadiums, bus shelters and outdoor queues for 82% of them. Café and restaurant terraces are cited by 72% of respondents, as are beaches, also at 72%.

« Where it is a matter of protecting those around smokers from tobacco smoke in certain places, support is high, and all the more so when children are involved », the Alliance comments.

It is worth recalling that the Bertrand decree, in force since the beginning of 2007, bans cigarettes in enclosed public places such as bars and restaurants, while smoking remains permitted in public spaces that are neither covered nor enclosed, such as stadiums, parks and terraces.

What about you? Are you in favour of banning cigarettes when children are present, whether in your car or near a school?