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Jean Castex (C) with the Mayor of Nice, who has seen drug-related violence for weeks
France will introduce fines on the ground across the country for drug users, particularly against cannabis, starting in September.
The move comes amid concerns about drug-related violence and was announced by Prime Minister Jean Castex on a trip to Nice, which has seen weeks of unrest.
The deployment of fines follows tests in cities such as Rennes and Marseille.
The fixed fine of € 200 ($ 233; £ 182) will be reduced to € 150 if paid within 15 days. France is one of the main cannabis consumers in Europe.
The legislation on recreational cannabis use varies widely from country to country. Several nations, such as Canada, have legalized it, while others have lesser punishment policies. But many others impose severe prison terms.
How will the system work?
France already has laws that allow up to one year in prison and fines of up to € 3,750 for the use of illicit drugs, without specifically distinguishing between types of drugs.
But laws, dating back to 1970, rarely lead to prison terms, and magistrates prefer alternative punishments, often warnings.
Although there is a reduction for the payment of an advance fine in the new system, if an offender does not pay on time, it increases to € 450.
Mr. Castex said that the system would enter at the beginning of la rentrée, the beginning of the school year after the summer break.
The fines were initially proposed in 2018 and were implemented as evidence in Rennes, Marseille, Lille, Créteil and Boissy-Saint-Léger.
Why is the system being brought in now?
It is part of the new prime minister’s plans to strengthen security. He said he wanted “to end the violence of everyday life.”
He said the drug measure would simplify police procedures by “inflicting punishment without delay.”
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Another 60 officers will be brought in to help Nice
Mr. Castex added that he would target drug dealers at their outlets, who were “eating in the neighborhoods.”
He was speaking in the southern port city of Nice, which has witnessed increasing drug-related violence, including in his Moulins district where this week they were shot in full light outside a supermarket.
When Mr. Castex made his visit on Saturday, a young man was found dead of injuries in the city.
What other measures were announced?
For Nice, Castex said 60 more police would be deployed in the coming weeks.
There would also be extended powers for the police in the city, although these would be detailed later and the renovation of the main prison.
More broadly, 150 jobs would be created elsewhere to focus on what he called “local criminal action and everyday crime.”
The death of a bus driver this month in Bayonne, attacked by passengers who reportedly refused to wear face masks amid the coronavirus outbreak, struck a particular nerve in France.
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