Paris to install 10,000 ashtrays in streets

Paris will install 10,000 ashtrays across the city in a bid to tackle the rising tide of cigarette litter.

Paris mayor Bertrand Delanoe has announced the huge roll-out in a bid to tackle the sea of discarded butts left on the city's streets by smokers, the Daily Mail reported.

The problem has reportedly worsened since Parisians were banned from smoking in public spaces such as bars and cafes five years ago.

Delanoe has also sought to increase fines for those caught throwing cigarette butts on the floor, according to the Mail on Thursday.

According to anti-smoking campaigners in France, it takes up to 12 years for a cigarette butt to decompose.