Eighty-seven hospitals in France have activated their so-called White Plan since the end of December after rising influenza cases, according to the Ministry of Health. Sante Publique France have said that in the week up to 5 January, 5.18% of hospital admissions nationally were for flu, a much higher percentage than normal. The figures in the Var and the Alpes-Maritimes were higher than the national average, standing at 8.27% in the Var and 7.46% in the Alpes-Maritimes.
Several vessels have been destroyed by fire in Marseille. The blaze broke out early this morning on a yacht, with the fire then spreading to the boats moored on each side of the yacht. Several dozen firefighters attended the incident but there were no reports of injuries.
Two people have been taken to hospital following an accident on the Promenade des Anglais in Nice this afternoon. Local reports say that a motorbike collided with a pedestrian, who suffered serious injuries.
Nice mayor and President of the Nice Cote d'Azur Metropolis, Christian Estrosi has signed the "Act and Innovate for Water" agreement with the Metropolis’s Water and Sanitation Authority. It said that the agreement will optimize the management of drinking water via a digital platform and thereby reduce the carbon footprint.
The new French Minister of Transport, Phillipe Tabarot, has been visiting Nice today. He attended a gathering of local security personnel along with Nice mayor Christian Estrosi.
The Palace in Monaco has said that Minister of State Monsieur Didier Guillaume will have to undergo medical treatment requiring a scheduled hospitalization that will not allow him to exercise his functions as Minister of State during the coming weeks. In a press release today the Palace said that, as of 10 January, His Serene Highness Prince Albert II entrusts the interim functions of Minister of State to Madame Isabelle Berro-Amadei, who is Government Counsellor-Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation. During this interim period, Madame Berro-Amadei remains in charge of her Department. His Serene Highness Prince Albert II extended his "most sincere wishes for a speedy recovery" to Monsieur Guillaume.
French Minister of the Interior Bruno Retailleau has said that Algeria is "trying to humiliate France". His remarks during a visit to Nantes today come after a row between the French and Algerian governments concerning the deportation of a social media influencer. The French government arrested the influencer after a social media post and deported him to his home country of Algeria yesterday. However, the Algerian government put him on a plane and returned him to France the same day. He is currently being held in a detention centre near Paris. The Interior Minister said that the return of the man is in breach of the Chicago convention which he said states that countries are responsible for their own citizens.
BUSINESS
The US Supreme Court is hearing an appeal by the owner of social media app TikTok today, which is attempting to overturn a US ban on the app. It's challenging a law passed last year ordering the firm to be split from its Chinese owner or be blocked from the US by 19 January. The US government is arguing that without a sale, TikTok could be used by China as a tool for spying and political manipulation. But TikTok rejects the claim.
The UK government has launched a consultation on possible measures to crack down on the reselling of tickets for live events at inflated prices. Fanfair Alliance which has been campaigning for changes to the secondary ticket market said that the proposed new measures are potentially "game changing".
Sainsburys has announced a 5% pay rise for its hourly paid staff after what it called it’s “biggest ever" Christmas. The rise means that staff will be paid £12.45 per hour starting in March, rising to £12.60 an hour in August, with staff in London receiving an extra £1.25 an hour on top of those amounts.
SPORT
Motorsports...It's been announced that Aston Martin Formula 1 boss Andy Cowell will take on the role of team principal in addition to his position as CEO. He takes over the role from Mike Krack.
Football… Norwich City's top scorer Borja Sainz has been suspended for six matches after admitting to spitting at Sunderland's Chris Mepham. He's also been fined £12,000 by the Football Association for the incident. He said he takes "full responsibility" and "deeply regrets" what he did.
Snooker…. Ronnie O'Sullivan has withdrawn from the Masters on medical grounds. He had been set to face John Higgins at the tournament on Sunday.
Tennis… Emma Raducanu has said that she is ready for the Australian Open and has recovered from a back spasm which disrupted her preparations for the tournament. She was forced to withdraw from the Auckland International because of the injury.
Speed restrictions are in place on all major roads in the Alpes-Maritimes today because of a smog alert....
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A Marseille magistrate has been sentenced on the 17th of June in Nîmes for repeatedly avoiding motorway tolls using fake license plates. ...
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A major police stop-and-search operation along France's borders is being carried out today, involving 4,000 police officers, gendarmes and customs off...
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SFR has announced automatic compensation of 100GB of free mobile data for affected customers following a major network outage on the 16th of June....
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French President Emmanuel Macron will chair a high-level Security and Defence Council meeting at the Élysée Palace today Wednesday, June 18th at 4pm, ...
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