Latest news with #Conseild'État
Euronews
30-05-2025
- Health
- Euronews
France to enact smoking ban in public spaces with children from 1 July
French Health Minister Catherine Vautrin announced on Thursday that a new smoking ban in outdoor public spaces where children are present will come into force from 1 July. Speaking to French newspaper Ouest France, Vautin said, "wherever there are children, smoking must disappear", adding that "a smoke-free generation is possible, and it starts now." A breach of the ban — which is part of France's wider National Tobacco Control Programme, announced in November 2023 — could be punishable with a €135 fine. In practice, smoking cigarettes will be outlawed in a range of public places — including beaches, parks, gardens, sports facilities, but also bus shelters and areas surrounding schools. Although the ban will not apply to the terraces of cafes and bars, France's health minister refused to rule out future similar bans in these spaces. Under the plan, electronic cigarettes will still be permitted in these spaces, but Vautrin emphasised that the government wanted to "lower the permitted nicotine content" in these devices, as well as reduce the variety of flavours available on the market by mid-2026. The detailed remit of the ban, which is being decided upon with France's Council of State (Conseil d'État) — the French advisory body tasked with advising the government on prospective bills and decrees — has not yet been revealed. The French Health Minister said the government was counting on"elected representatives to implement (the ban) pragmatically." The French government has made tackling the number of deaths caused by smoking one of its key missions. Every year, 75,000 people are estimated to die from tobacco-related complications in France. In 2023, France's National Tobacco Control Programme set out to develop 26 measures — which included raising the price of tobacco, introducing plain packaging and banning the sale of vaping products — in a bid to reduce smoking-related deaths. According to a survey conducted by NGO "La Ligue contre le cancer", nearly eight out of 10 of those questioned were in favour of a ban, while 83% backed similar legislation for electronic cigarettes. The measures unveiled by France follow Thursday's announcement from the Spanish government, revealing its plans to ban smoking in a wide range of places — including bar and restaurant terraces, university campuses, vehicles used for work purposes and outdoor sporting events. French President Emmanuel Macron said France's newly signed partnership with Singapore will serve as a "tangible roadmap to innovate together" in fields ranging from artificial intelligence and technology to nuclear energy and defence. "Our defence cooperation, shared support of multilateralism, and joint investment in breakthrough technologies are all paving the way for future generations," Macron said during a state lunch with Singaporean President Tharman Shanmugaratnam. Speaking to journalists at a joint presser with Macron, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said both countries strongly believe in multilateralism and a rules-based global order. "We know that this global order is shifting. What we have seen before in the decades past is starting to change. No one knows what the new order will be in the coming years. So we are in a period of transition," Wong noted, emphasising the importance of cooperation between "like-minded countries" during this transitional period. Macron's state visit to Singapore is part of his week-long tour of Southeast Asia, where he focused on strengthening regional ties. On Wednesday, the French president met with his Indonesian counterpart Prabowo Subianto to discuss boosting defence and trade cooperation between the two nations. The French leader is expected to deliver the keynote speech at the annual Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's top security conference, later on Friday. The summit will focus on China's growing assertiveness, the global impact of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and the flare-ups of conflicts in Asia. The French leader is expected to touch on all those issues, as well as the sweeping tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump's administration that are looming over its Asian allies. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth will also be present this weekend among the world leaders, diplomats and top defence officials attending the Asian security summit, which is hosted by the International Institute for Security Studies. Hegseth, who is attending the forum for the first time, will give a speech on Saturday, where he is likely to discuss how the Trump administration plans to tackle security challenges in Asia and attempt to convince Asian leaders that the US is a more reliable partner than China. The defence secretary met with Singapore's Prime Minister Lawrence Wong prior to the conference, where he described the extent of the two nations' military cooperation as "unprecedented". "The amount of, the hospitality that you show to our troops, the rotational forces, our ships that are here, but then also the over a thousand members of your military over in the United States," Hegseth told Wong. The summit is taking place against the backdrop of escalating tensions between Beijing and Washington, triggered by the Trump administration's threat to impose triple-digit tariffs on China. There is also uncertainty regarding the United States' commitment to defending Taiwan, which it has also threatened with tariffs of 32%. Before boarding his plane for Singapore, Hegseth reiterated his administration's stance on Taiwan's defence. 'We seek no conflict with anybody, including the communist Chinese,' he said. "We will stay strong for our interests. And that's a big part of what this trip is all about.'
Local France
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Local France
Explained: France's 'consent-based' changes to rape laws
MPs in France's Assemblée nationale have adopted a cross-party bill updating the country's rape laws to include the notion of consent. Here's what happens next, what the changes would mean and why they are happening. What's the change? The bill intends to redefine the article of France's Penal Code covering all sexual assaults, including rape, by redefining them as, 'any non-consensual sexual act'. The text also specifies what is and is not consent, in order to guide investigators and judges. 'Consent is free and informed, specific, prior and revocable. It is assessed in the light of the surrounding circumstances,' the text proposes. 'It cannot be inferred from the victim's silence or lack of reaction alone,' it adds. Advertisement It reiterates that existing terms in the Penal Code must remain, stating 'there is no consent if the sexual act is committed with violence, coercion, threats or surprise'. Justice minister Gérald Darmanin told MPs: 'In future, the perpetrator will have to demonstrate that they have obtained consent, and the investigation will have to focus on what they understood, perceived, and did to ensure the other person's agreement." He insisted the text does not demand positive proof 'as if we were signing a contract". An MPs' report , published in January after a year-long 'information mission' led by Macronist Véronique Riotton and Green Marie-Charlotte Garin, argued that France's rape laws should specifically include, 'the notion of non-consent into the criminal definition of rape and sexual assault'. 'Almost 10 years after the start of the #MeToo movement, and as the Pelicot trial showed once again, the fight against rape culture must be a priority: the fight against rape culture needs a law that is clearer,' the report argued. Article 222-23 of the French Penal Code currently states that any act of sexual penetration, of whatever nature, or any oral-genital act by 'violence, constraint, threat or surprise' is rape. Will this become law? The bill was adopted in the Assemblée nationale by 161 votes to 56. The text now passes to the Senate for further examination before returning to the Assembly for a full vote. MPs from Marine Le Pen's far-right Rassemblement National voted against the bill, along with members of the Union des Droites pour la République (UDR) group led by Eric Ciotti, and nine of 21 socialist MPs – who had been granted a free vote by their leaders. President Emmanuel Macron had also signalled that he backs a change to the law. As with all new laws or legal changes, if the bill makes it through the various parliamentary changes it will also have to be approved by the Conseil d'Etat, which validates new laws. Advertisement According to the co-rapporteurs, the wording of the bill has already been approved by the Conseil d'État. In its opinion at the beginning of March, the Conseil d'État considered that 'the main contribution of the bill' would be to 'consolidate the advances of case law', which already considers the lack of consent, 'as a key element'. Is it controversial? Despite the clear majority in favour in the first vote, the bill has proved decisive with several groups objecting. 'I believe that … collectively, we have acknowledged that we are moving from a culture of rape to a culture of consent,' said Green MP Marie-Charlotte Garin, one of the co-rapporteurs of the bill prior to the vote. 'We are throwing the first stone at the wall of impunity.' Opponents, however, argued that including non-consent in the criminal definition of rape will lead to the investigation focusing on the victim's attitude. 'What matters is not what the aggressor believes, it's what the victim wants,' insisted Aurore Bergé, the Minister for Gender Equality. 'Consent is everywhere in the legal process, but it is absent from French law,' which, as it stands, 'does not provide sufficient means of punishing aggressors,' Macronist MP Véronique Riotton, the other co-rapporteur of the text. RN's Sophie Blanc, however, said: 'The current definition of rape is already sufficiently precise.' One socialist MP opposing the bill, Céline Thiébault-Martinez, claimed: 'No one can say that this bill will have the expected effect, namely better recognition of the victims'. Advertisement She said that the initiative will 'penalise victims even more'. They would find themselves questioned 'first and foremost about their consent'. But Garin pointed out that introduction of consent into the law 'had never' put the victim 'at the heart of the hearings' in the countries that have done so – notably Spain, Sweden and Denmark. How does this compare to other countries? If the law is adopted, France would hardly be the first country to make this type of legal change. Some 19 European countries have added clear and definitive references to consent into their rape laws. In Spain – where the law took effect in October 2022, four years after the country was shocked by the notorious 'wolf-pack' case, in which a young woman was gang-raped by five men in Pamplona during its bull-running festival – it is known as 'only yes means yes'. Advertisement France is a signatory to the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, known as the Istanbul Convention, which states, 'consent must be given voluntarily as a result of the free will of the person considered in the context of the surrounding circumstances'. But efforts to implement an EU-wide law preventing sexual violence that inscribed this notion of consent failed, in part because – at the time – France opposed it. Why is this being discussed now? Campaigners and some feminist groups have been pushing for legal changes to the country's rape laws for some time, but the issue of sexual violence and rape culture was brought into the spotlight by the Pelicot trial in 2024. Dominique Pelicot was found guilty of drugging his wife Gisèle and inviting dozens of strangers to the family home in Mazan, southern France, to rape her. Although Dominique admitted his guilt, the defence of many of the co-accused rested on the notion of consent, with several arguing that they since Dominique had given his consent, they did not require Gisèle's consent. READ ALSO ANALYSIS: Will the Pelicot rape trial lead to lasting change in France? A culture of impunity is evident in France, the MPs behind the report said. According to Ministry of Justice figures, just 1,206 rape convictions were handed down in France in 2022 – even though an act of sexual violence is committed every two minutes. At the time of the Pelicot trial, one of the lawyers for the defence had argued against changing the law to include reference to consent. 'Modifying the text on rape to include the notion of consent would have a deleterious effect on criminal law,' the lawyer, who represented four defendants in the trial, said. 'Today – and this is the basis of our criminal law – it is always up to the prosecution to prove that a crime or misdemeanor has been committed. It's up to the prosecution to prove the materiality and intentionality of the offence. 'If we introduce the notion of consent, then the burden of proof will be reversed. It will be up to the accused to prove that he or she had the consent of the person claiming to be the victim. This would be a real revolution in French law and … it would affect the presumption of innocence.'
