Hoax bomb threats have been sent to several schools in our region this morning. Threats were received at three educational establishments in Nice. The Var prefecture said this afternoon that bomb threats were sent to several schools in the Toulon area this morning and that procedures to identify and arrest the authors of the messages are underway. Three educational establishments in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence were also targeted by bomb threats by e-mail this morning. Security perimeters were established and the premises were searched. The number of such threats has increased significantly across France in recent weeks. Establishments in Lyon as well as in the Nord and Pas-de-Calais departments also received threats this morning.
Today is the eighth anniversary of the Paris attacks on the evening of 13 November 2015. 130 people lost their lives in the attacks, including 90 at the Bataclan Theatre. Over 400 people were injured. A three month state of emergency was declared after the attacks.
The President of the Hauts-de-France region has said that there is "no immmediate prospect of improvement" in the situation regarding floods which have been affecting the region this month. Xavier Bertrand called for Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne to visit the region and for immediate compensation to be made available. In an update issued earlier today the Pas-de-Calais prefecture said that 600 homes are still without electricity and 50 main roads remain blocked. It said that scools in 279 municiplaities in the department will remain closed today and tomorrow.
The Var prefecture has announced a test of the France Alert system. A notification will be sent to the mobile phones of people located within a 5 km radius around the naval base in Toulon next Thursday, 23 November. It is only a test and the prefecture said that no action is required by people receiving the message.
Nice Mayor Christian Estrosi has held a meeting with the new president of the League Against Cancer 06 to take stock of the partnership established several years ago between the association and the City of Nice. Nice was the first city in France to be labelled “Tobacco-free Beach” in 2012. The mayor said that he wants 100% of Nice's public beaches to become tobacco-free by next summer.
The United Nations children's fund UNICEF has opened an office in Cannes. The space at 97 boulevard de la Republique was inaugurated by Mayor David Lisnard and Alexandra Ardisson, president of the Azur-Mediterranean Committee of UNICEF. The association already has a branch in the Var, in Toulon, and will soon inaugurate a new branch in Corsica.
The palace in Monaco will be illuminated in blue tomorrow evening on the occasion of World Diabetes Day, which is commemorated every November 14. The day aims to raise awareness of the impact of diabetes on people's health and to highlight the possibilities of strengthening the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the disease.
The Environment Department in Monaco is launching a collection of spectacles and sunglasses. The initiative is part of European Waste Reduction Week. The department is installing boxes to collect old glasses and sunglasses at the entrance to the Fontvieille shopping centre from today until November 26. They will be then handed over to the Monegasque Association Semeurs d’Espoir or “Sowers of Hope” to offer them a new life and provide a service to people who need it.
BUSINESS
UK business confidence fell to its lowest level this year according to a survey by Accenture and S&P Global. In October the net balance of firms expecting activity to increase over the next 12 months slid to 37% in October, down from 40% in June and 43% in February. Although UK companies maintained a positive outlook for the upcoming year, the organizations said that the research suggests that concerns about the cost of living and elevated interest rates have moderated the positive effects of milder inflation. UK business optimism still remained relatively high compared to global and European figures.
UK communications regulator Ofcom has fined Royal Mail £5.6m for failing to meet its First and Second Class delivery targets in the 2022/23 financial year. Under Ofcom’s rules, Royal Mail is required to deliver 93% of First Class mail within one working day and 98.5% of Second Class mail within three working days. It's also required to complete 99.9% of delivery routes for each day on which a delivery is required. Ofcom said that Royal Mail's breach of its obligations "caused considerable harm to customers", and the company "took insufficient steps to try and prevent this failure".
SPORT
Football... Cole Palmer, Ezri Konsa and Rico Lewis have been called up to the England squad for the first time for the Euro 2024 qualifiers. The appointments follows the withdrawal of James Maddison, Callum Wilson and Lewis Dunk because of injury. England play Malta on 17 November and North Macedonia on 20 November.
Rasmus Hojlund and Christian Eriksen have withdrawn from the Denmark squad for this month's Euro 2024 qualifiers because of injury. Denmark play Slovenia on 17 November and Northern Ireland on 20 November.
Tennis… Emma Raducanu has pulled out of an exhibition match in Macau as she continues her rehabilitation from hand and foot operations. The 2021 US Open champion turns 21 today. She hasn’t played since April, but is still hoping to return to the tour in January.
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