Raising prices, banning smoking on the beach… What does the government’s anti-smoking plan contain?

Restaurants, cafes, hospitals, public transport and even schools since 2007 or 2008… and soon beaches, green spaces, forests and schools all around. The government intends to reduce the number of smokers in France by expanding the list of places where lighting cigarettes is prohibited, as well as continuing to increase the price of a pack. These two measures are at the heart of the new national tobacco control program for 2023-2027, presented on Tuesday morning by Health Minister Aurélien Rousseau.

According to the latest French Public Health survey published on May 31, a quarter of French adults smoke daily. This proportion of the population remained stable at around 30% until 2016, then fell five points and then remained at around 25% post-Covid. “Cigarettes could be perceived as a tool for coping with stress or coping with everyday difficulties,” especially among disadvantaged groups, Anne Pasquerot, head of research and studies at the drug addiction department of French Public Health, told us at the time.

Tobacco, which causes 75,000 deaths a year, is “the leading cause of preventable mortality” and “a scourge of public health,” Aurélien Rousseau justified.

A package of “about 13 euros” in 2026?

Determined to bring the curve back, the government decided to make more “non-smoking” areas. By decision of the municipality, many beaches were already open in the summer, but now they will all be open all year round. Smoking will also be prohibited in all public gardens, forests and around schools (the exact perimeter will be established locally by city halls and prefectures). These measures will be adopted by decree “in the first quarter” of 2024.

The government also intends to hit the wallet, continuing the strategy started several years ago. It is already expected that the average price of a pack of cigarettes will increase by about 50 euro cents from January 1, and then reach 12 euros in 2015.

This increase should not stop there: through a gradual increase, the price of the package should be “13 euros in 2026,” Aurélien Rousseau further indicated. “Increasing the price of a pack of tobacco has been shown time and again to have a direct impact and to be effective,” said Loïc Josserand, president of the Alliance Against Tobacco.

To prevent smokers from switching to other products, the government also plans to ban Puff, a ready-to-use disposable e-cigarette.