French Prime Minister Jean Castex has signed an agreement which increases the pay of medical workers. The agreements are part of the Segur de la Sante health services review and still need to be voted on as part of the social security budget before they can come in to force. The agreements include 7.6 billion euros to be paid to paramedical staff, such as nurses, and non-medical staff, for example technicians, in French public hospitals and nursing homes. Minister of Health Olivier Veran described the sum as "historic". In addition, 450 million euros has been set aside to improve the pay of hospital doctors and 124 million euros for hospital interns. Extra funds have also been made available for medical and parmedical students.
A 54 year old man is in a critical condition in hospital after a boating accident in Villefranche sur Mer at the weekend. Reports say that the man was being towed by a rope from a boat driven by a relative. He then tried to get back on the boat but his leg was caught by the propellor. He was taken to the Pasteur 2 hospital where he has been placed in an artificial coma after having surgery.
A motorcyclist has been seriously injured after an accident in the port area of Nice this morning. A collision occurred between the motorclycle and a truck at the junction of rue Arson and rue Barla. Traffic was severely disrupted in the area.
A hiker has died after falling whilst out walking in the Esteron valley. The 58 year old apparently hit his head on a rock while hiking with a companion near Aiglun. Firefighters attended the scene but the man's life couldn't be saved.
Blows were exchanged between passengers and crew members on a Corsica Ferry at the weekend. Footage was posted on social media, apparently of a fight on the ferry from Corsica to Toulon on Saturday night. According to local media, there had been double booking of some of the cabins, meaning that certain passangers didn't have any accomodation on the crossing.
A French football player has been shot dead in Tolouse early this morning. Christopher Aurier was the younger brother of Tottenham and former Paris Saint Germain player Serge Aurier. Reports say that he was found in an industrial zone on the city's outskirts. An inquiry has been opened.
The number of people who lost their lives on French roads in the month of June has fallen by 29.1% compared to last year. However, the figures are in the context of a reduced number of road journeys. Securite Routiere, the road safety organization, says that road deaths can often double during the summer months compared to winter. The organization has called for vigilance and caution, particularly as an increased number of people are expected to get to their holiday destination by car this year instead of by using public transport.
Meteo France have a Yellow warning for storms in the Alpes Maritimes until 9pm this evening and for the Var until 6pm. They could affect coastal areas as well as inland areas.
BUSINESS
The International Monetary Fund has said that the EU economy may take until 2022 to return to the levels seen in 2019. The Director of the IMF's European department said that it expects real GDP in the EU to contract by 9.3% in 2020 and then grow by 5.7% in 2021. He said that the figures could be better if an effective Covid-19 vaccine is found but coud be worse if there were "large new waves of infection".
Pepsico has issued a better than expected trading update and earnings report. However, the food and drinks company, which owns brands such as Lipton and Tropicana as well as Pepsi, still said that revenue fell in the first quarter - from 16.45 billion dollars a year earlier to 15.95 billion.
The chief executive of Google's parent company Alphabet has said that Google will invest $10bn in India in the next five to seven years. The funds will be used to build products and services for India, help businesses go digital and use technology "for social good".
New data shows that footfall on the UK's high streets in the month of June was down by 65% compared to a year earlier. The figures are a slight improvement on May, when footfall was down by 73%. Retail parks apparently fared better, with footfall dropping by 32% in the period from 31 May to 4 July.
SPORT
Football.... Manchester City have overturned their two-year ban from European club competitions. The Court of Arbitration for Sport announced today that the club had been cleared of "disguising equity funds as sponsorship contributions". City's fine has been cut from 30m euros to 10m euros. The CAS said that the club had failed "to cooperate with Uefa authorities" but overturned the ban which was made in February by Uefa's club financial control body.
American Football... The Washington Redskins have said that they will stop using the Redskins name which has long been criticised as being racist and offensive to Native Americans. The team said it would "be retiring the Redskins name and logo upon completion of a review". The team's major sponsors recently threatened to pull funding unless it considered renaming itself.
Rugby Union.... Manu Tuilagi has signed for Sale Sharks until the end of the 2020-21 season. The England centre parted company with Leicester Tigers earlier this month after they failed to agree terms.
American Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost has been elected Pope Leo XIV, becoming the first U.S.-born pope and signalling continuity with Pope Francis’...
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A Polish man in his forties has been hospitalized in Valence after enduring a harrowing journey between two TGV carriages from Paris. ...
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Cloudy with sunny intervals. Light rain is forecast for the Var region with moderate to strong winds. Highs of 17 degrees in Monaco and Saint-Tropez, ...
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White smoe Is billowing from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel meaning A new pope has just been chosen! 133 cardinals have gathered in the Sistine cha...
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No new pope has been elected yet, as black smoke signalled another inconclusive vote during the conclave in the morning of Thursday the 8th of May. ...
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