Lunchtime News Monday 4th January 2021

News

Curfew - Since Saturday, January 2nd, the Alpes-Maritimes and the Hautes-Alpes have been placed on a 6pm curfew despite the measure being considered as "inept" by some elected officials on the Riviera. The Alpes-Maritimes and Hautes-Alpes are among 15 departments in France where the curfew has been advanced from 8pm to 6pm. The decision is due to the incidence rate which stands at 295 per 100,000 inhabitants in the Alpes-Maritimes and 262 per 100,000 inhabitants in the Hautes-Alpes, compared to 124 on a national level.

For businesses: Shops and personal service establishments must close at 6 p.m. Picking up take outs is not permitted after 6pm however, deliveries are still possible. For professional activities: Travel related to professional activity is not affected by the curfew. Outdoor exercise after 6pm is also banned and only those having to exercise their dog are allowed to do so after 6pm.

However, elected officials in the region contesting the new curfew argue that, “no health assessment shows that social interactions are stronger at these times of the day and that people are at risk of congregating in large retail outlets in shorter periods of time”. Instead some elected officials suggest “stricter border controls and enforced tests on arrivals at Nice International airport” and that the "vaccinations programme be rolled out quicker". 

Trial - The trial of Jacqueline Veyrac begins today in Nice. Veyrac a wealthy hotel owner from the Riviera, was kidnapped in broad daylight on October 24th, 2016 and found alive but tied up in a van 48 hours later. 13 men are to appear in court today in connection with the kidnapping among which is a former 52 year old English soldier, who has reportedly admitted his involvement. The trial was originally scheduled to take place in spring 2020 but was postponed due to the health crisis.

TGV forced to turn around after hitting wild boar - A TGV from Marseille to Paris has been forced to stop after hitting a wild boar on Sunday evening. As passengers returned to the capital after the festive holidays many didn’t reach their destination until 1am this morning. The train was forced to return to Marseille after it hit the wild boar just after Avignon causing damage to the engine.

Disney + - The Disney + streaming platform is to expand its offer in films and series from the end of February with the arrival in France of a new service called Star, which will also result in an increase of two euros in subscription, After content from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, and the 30 seasons of The Simpsons, Disney + will strengthen its catalogue from February 23rd with the new brand which will include "thousands of hours of films and series". Launched in France and several other countries in Europe, Star, targets an adult audience. Its integration will lead to an increase in the monthly subscription from 6.99 to 8.99 euros.

Disney + announced in December that it had exceeded its objectives with the conquest of 86.8 million subscribers worldwide since its launch in November 2019.

Winter sales - The winter sales have officially started here in the Principality three weeks ahead of France. Saturday saw discounts from 30% and even up to 80% in some retail shops. The sales are on in Monaco until February 15th.