Sir Paul McCartney attacks French school over vegetarian ban

Sir Paul McCartney has attacked the French Government for banning vegetarian meals in schools.
There will be no meat-free days in French schools for six million children following a new decree from their government that all students will have to eat meat if they want lunch at school. Taking a packed lunch is not an alternative as they are also banned.

The ban will shortly be extended to kindergartens, hospitals, prisons, colleges and old people's homes.

French agriculture minister, Bruno Lemaire, said in January that the Government's aim for nutrition was to defend the French agricultural model and counter initiatives such as those by vegetarian campaigners like Sir Paul – who has called for a reduced consumption of meat.

But writing on his website, Sir Paul said: "The French Government's recent decree effectively enforcing the consumption of animal products in public institutions is a backward step for France. It goes against the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union by prohibiting individuals' right to express their beliefs.No one needs to eat animals – and we can combat climate change and lessen the risk of suffering from heart disease and other ailments by reducing the amount of meat we eat."
This week People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) launched a new stamp range featuring the 20 most famous vegetarians of all-time, including the ex-Beatle. Sir Paul along with Natalie Portman, Pamela Anderson and Morrissey have agreed to feature on the stamp. The stamps can be purchased throughout December at www.peta.org

Source: telegraph.co.uk

Question 1. Indicate whether these sentences are true or false. Justify your answers with evidence from the text.

a) Students cannot take home-made lunches to school.
b) Currently there are no meat-free meals for people who are in prison. c) Sir Paul McCartney believes that the French Government’s decision does not respect people’s rights. D) According to McCartney, people who eat meat are more likely to suffer illnesses.

Question 2. Answer the following questions in your own words.

a) Why has Sir Paul McCartney reacted against the French Government?
b) What has PETA done about the ban?

Question 3. Find a word or a phrase in the text that means the same as:

a) soon (par.3) b) attenuate, decrease (par.5) c) buy (par.6)

Question 4. Rewrite the following sentences without changing the meaning.

a) The French Government has banned packed lunches.
Packed lunches ......................................................
b) " No one needs to eat animals and we can combat climate change.”
Sir Paul McCartney said that .................................................
c) Mr. Dahl suffered from heart disease because he ate too much meat.
If Mr Dahl .................................................

Question 5. Write a short essay (120-150 words) on the following topic:
What do you think about climate change? How can you help?