And a year before that I was a pack a day smoker, living a very sedentary lifestyle.

In reality, nicotine is a relatively safe drug at dosages that a smoker or vaper inhales, with similar effects to caffeine. Moreover, smokers and PNV users control very precisely, on a puff by puff basis, the dose of nicotine they consume, virtually eliminating the risk of overdose.

France is now experiencing a practical demonstration of this insane and totally inefficient policy, with the Minister of the Interior, Nicolas Sarkozy, providing a telling illustration of the new orientation when he described the rebellious young as scum. It was the proverbial match thrown by a careless smoker into a parched forest.