Lunchtime News. Monday June 29th 2020

Mayor re-elected-Christian Estrosi has said that the people of Nice “remain his priority” after being elected for a third term as Mayor of the city.

Mr Estrosi won the second round of the municipal elections with a comfortable 59 percent of the vote.     His nearest rival ,Philippe Vardon of Marine Le Pen’s RN party scored just 21.29 percent.

Mr Estrosi said that the fresh mandate would allow him to push ahead with his plans for the city with more funds for green projects ,employment and tourism.

Child in intensive care -A six year old boy is in intensive care in the Lenval Children’s Hospital in Nice following a swimming accident over the weekend.

The child was pulled from the water after getting into difficulty off the beach between Carras and Sainte-Helene.

Other bathers went to the boy’s aid and performed CPR before emergency services arrived.

It’s the second incident in the space of three days in the area.Last week ,a man drowned while swimming off the beach opposite the Promenade des Anglais.

Road accident-Two people  been  injured ,one seriously  in a road accident between Cogolin and La Mole in the Var.

Authorities say that the accident happened on the RN98 near the Chateau Tremouries on Monday morning when a car collided with a motorbike.

The most seriously injured person has been airlifted to hospital.

Enquiries continue.

Liserons- 4 people have been arrested in the troubled eastern Nice neighbourhood of Liserons on suspicion of drug trafficking.

A company of crack CRS police has been patrolling the area for the past two weeks following numerous incidents including gunshots being fired and several stabbings.

The arrests were made following a surveillance operation  by drugs squad officers.

The violent incidents in recent weeks are all thought to be connected with the illegal drugs trade.

Edouard Philippe-A new opinion poll has suggested that the majority of French voters want Edouard Philippe to remain as Prime Minister.

Mr Philippe was re-elected as Mayor of the Northern port city of Le Havre on Sunday but his position as Prime Minister remains unclear amid reports of a major cabinet reshuffle being planned by President Macron.

The Harris poll for TF1 ,LCI and RTL shows that 55 percent of voters wish Mr Philippe to remain as Prime Minister although 70 percent are in favour of a cabinet reshuffle.

Mr Philippe is judged to have done as Prime Minister during the coronavirus pandemic but President Macron has not been viewed in such a good light with his approval rating hovering at around 38 percent.

Fillon verdict- A court in Paris is to hand down its verdict in the fraud trial against former French Presidential candidate Francois Fillon and his wife Penelope.

Mr Fillon is accused of creating a bogus post that paid his wife over a million euros in public funds in a scandal that ended his 2017 Presidential campaign.

Reports say that the verdict could be delayed amid allegations of alleged pressure put on prosecutors.

Mr Fillon’s lawyers have demanded that the case be started again from scratch  and President Macron has called for an independent investigation.

Prosecutors have called for a 5 year jail term with 3 years suspended to be imposed on Mr Fillon while his wife risks a three year suspended sentence if found guilty.