Annotation #10

France Smokers Divided on Ban

Daily Register

Elaine Ganley

Associated Press Writer

Smoking has recently been banned in public areas in France. Some people believe that this ban will change the image of their country. There are to be many agents and fines to enforce the ban. Many French writers are known for smoking, and some people believe that a smoking ban will cause these important figures to not be remembered as notably. There are 66,000 smoking-related deaths per year in France. Almost 1/4 of French people smoke. Some people are angry about the ban and feel that they will smoke more because of it. Others are happy about the ban because they feel it will help them cut down on smoking. The French government is reimbursing $65 per person per year for aids to help them stop-smoking, and letting companies have special smoking rooms inside workplaces. Pro-smoking groups are saying that the ban limits smokers' freedoms, and that enforcement of the ban is going to be hard.