Smoking in public is now illegal in Beijing, and this time China's serious

Beijing just banned public smoking, and this time it&#039;s serious

(Image credit: Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)

published 1 June 2015

As of June 1, Beijing residents can no longer smoke in restaurants or bars, office buildings, or on public transportation, under legislation passed last November. Violators of the ordinance will be fined 200 yuan ($32), and businesses that allow smoking will be slapped with fines of up to 10,000 yuan ($1,600). After three violations, public smokers will be named-and-shamed on a government website, Reuters reports.

Smoking in public spaces is already supposed to be prohibited nationwide under 2011 health ministry guidelines, but China's 300 million smokers routinely ignore the rules, or shrug off the 10 yuan ($1.60) fine. Beijing, with some of the worst air pollution in the world, appears to be serious this time, rolling out a public anti-smoking campaign and deploying thousands of inspectors. No word on whether China plans to increase the price of a pack of cigarettes from as low as 80 cents.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.