00:01France is launching its biggest smoking ban to date,
00:04a major cultural shift for a country famed for its love affair with the cigarette.
00:10A government decree published on Saturday extends the ban to most outdoor public spaces,
00:14including beaches, parks and near schools.
00:19Help Minister Catherine Wotrin said the goal is to make tobacco disappear where there are children.
00:25The new law clashes with the romanticized image of smoking long glorified in classic French cinema.
00:33But health authorities link tobacco to 75,000 deaths in France each year.
00:39While the ban is now official, fines up to 135 euros will not be enforced until July the 1st.
00:47The move brings France more in line with other European countries,
00:50though cafe and restaurant terraces remain exempt for now.
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