Taxi drivers in Nice have filed a strike notice for next Tuesday, the 28th of May. The drivers are protesting at what they see as unfair competition from VCT vehicles, including Uber.
The French national gendarmerie has revealed that an extensive criminal network in our region has been dismantled. The network involved the theft of vehicles. Forces from Marseille as well as national law enforcement personnel were involved in the operation. Vehicles were allegedly dismantled and the parts sold in central and eastern Europe.
The Monaco government has announced new security measures to protect public order at the time of the Top Marques car show. The government says that in view of what it calls the nuisances and incivilities on the sidelines of previous editions of Top Marques, the Prince's Government has decided to reinforce its legal arsenal in order to effectively fight disturbances in public order as well as the irresponsible behaviour of many drivers. Vehicles contravening the rules of the highway code (such as non-compliance with speed limits, dangerous driving, non-compliance with noise levels or the lack of a driver's license) may be immobilized for 120 hours and their drivers punished with fines of up to 1,000 euros. In addition, suspension of driving licenses or, in the case of foreign licences, the right to use them in Monaco, may be made for a period of up to 3 months. The public authorities want no test drives to be carried out on public roads this year. Top Marques takes place at the Grimaldi Forum from the 30th of May to the 3rd of June.
Traffic has been disrupted in central Nice this afternoon because of a gas leak. Apparently a construction worker on the tramway site drilled through a gas pipe in the area of the rue Pastorelli. Pompiers and employees of Gaz de France cordoned off the area and quickly repaired the leak.
A skier has died following an avalanche in Saint Martin-Vésubie. Recue services said the man did not survive from his injuries after being taken to hospital on Sunday afternoon. Adverse weather conditions had delayed the intervention making it impossible for the victim to be air lifted by helicopter. It’s the first deadly avalanche in the Alpes-Maritimes since March last year when four skiers were killed in the region.
A van caught fire on the D43 near Rocbaron this morning, disrupting traffic in the area. The van was towing a caravan at the time. Firefighters brought the blaze under control and no injuries were reported.
A 60 year old man suffered serious burns after a fire in his apartment in Manosque in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. Four firefighters were slightly injured in the blaze and seven police officers were affected by smoke.
BUSINESS
Jaguar Land Rover has reported a loss of £3.6bn in the last 12 months, mainly because of a £3.3bn write-down in the third quarter. The company posted a £120m profit for the fourth quarter of the year. Revenue for the year was £24.2bn.
Ryanair has announced profits down 29%. It made €1bn last year after tax, down from €1.45bn in the previous year. Ryanair said that it expects profits to fall further this year to between €750m and €950m.
Japan's economy unexpectedly expanded in the first quarter of the year. It grew an annualised 2.1% in the first quarter, against expectations for a 0.2% contraction
SPORT
Cricket...Pakistan have called up Asif Ali, Mohammad Amir and Wahab Riaz to their final 15-man World Cup squad. The three players were not in the provisional squad but have been called up after the 4-0 one-day series defeat by England.
Football...Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos has signed a four-year contract extension with the club. The new deal ties the Germany international to Madrid until 30 June, 2023.
Kroos has so far made 233 appearances for Real Madrid.
Motorsports...Jamie Chadwick, one of Britain's leading female racing drivers, has joined the Williams Formula 1 team as a development driver. It is the same role that Susie Wolff had for Williams from 2012-15, before her retirement. Chadwick is the only woman to win a British Formula 3 race and is driving in the new, all-female W Series this year.
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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