A French television journalist has died whilst covering the war in Ukraine. President Macron announced the death of Frédéric Leclerc Imhoff who worked for BFM TV. The 32 year old died from shrapnel wounds whilst on board a humanitarian bus in the Donbas region. French Foreign Affairs minister Catherine Colonna has demanded that a "transparent investigation" is carried out as soon as possible. On its Twitter feed this afternoon BFM TV posted that Frédéric was "brave and discreet" and "the pain is immense".
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin has described what he called massive industrial ticket fraud at Saturday's Champions League final in Paris. He said that 30 to 40,000 English supporters either had no ticket or had a counterfeit ticket. Ministers acknowledged "difficulties" in managing crowds, but say organized fraud was the "root cause" of the problems. The French sports ministry has been meeting today with Europe's football governing body Uefa, the French Football Association, stadium officials and police. Liverpool fans were seen waiting in huge queues outside the stadium, with French police allegedly using pepper spray. The start of the final was delayed by 35 minutes.
Industrial action is affecting train services in many parts of the Provence Alpes Cote d'Azur region today. However, the SNCF have said that the Côte d'Azur isn't expected to be affected. More details of specific services are available on www.sncf.com
Nice Mayor Christian Estrosi has laid the first stone of a new 5-star hotel. The hotel will be in the Couvent de la Visitation in the old town, which has been listed as a historical monument since 1989. The mayor said that in 2025 the Metropole Nice Cote d'Azur will have nearly 3,000 more hotel rooms with nearly 62% of construction or reconstruction being 4 or 5 star hotels. This morning the mayor also met with architects involved in the renovation of the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art. The museum renovation project is expected to get underway in the autum of 2023.
Monaco firefighters have unveiled a system for dealing with potential battery fires on electric vehicles. Under the system, which is a world first, in the event of an incident on a battery pack of a vehicle, the vehicle is covered with an insulating cover and then towed into a special box. The box, which was at the fire station in Fontvieille during the Grand Prix, but will be moved to a new location, is equipped with thermal insulation walls, multiple sensors and an automatic extinguishing device. The box also makes it possible to treat the toxic gases and liquids emitted by the faulty batteries.
BUSINESS
Inflation in Germany has hit its highest level in almost 50 years. Federal statistics body Destatis said that the consumer price index inflation rate is expected to be 7.9% on an annual basis in May. It said that energy prices, in particular, have increased considerably since the war in Ukraine started and have had a considerable impact on the inflation rate. Prices of energy in Germany rose by 38.3% in May year on year and food prices by 11.1%.
In the UK, the Federation of Small Businesses has said that millions of thousands of small businesses are at risk of closing within the next few weeks because of sharply rising costs. Speaking on the BBC's Today programme, the organization's chairman Martin McTague called on Chancellor Rishi Sunak to provide assistance to small businesses.
The Financial Times is rebranding its long-running luxury magazine How To Spend It. Announcing the change of name to HTSI, editor Jo Ellison said that times have changed in the light of two years of a health crisis, a cost of living crisis and the war in Ukraine. Readers are now being invited to interpret the title in light of their own views, with suggestions including How to Style It, How to Savor It and How to Save It.
SPORT
Tennis... In a major upset at the French Open, Danish teenager Holger Rune has beaten fourth seed Stefanos Tisitsipas 7-5 3-6 6-3 6-4. Veronika Kudermetova is through to the next round of the French Open after defeating American Madison Keys 1-6 6-3 6-1 in her round of sixteen match today. Daria Kasatkina beat Camila Giorgi 6-2 6-2. Jessica Pegula is through to the quarter finals after beating Irina-Camelia Begu 4-6 6-2 6-3. Norway's Casper Ruud beat Hubert Hurk-acz.
Rugby Union... Ulster have signed New Zealand tighthead prop Jeffery Toomaga-Allen. He joins the side on a one-year contract from Wasps.
Golf... Edoardo Molinari has been named as second vice-captain for Europe in the 2023 Ryder Cup. Thomas Bjorn was appointed vice-captain earlier this month.
TGV services across much of France are gradually improving after several arson attacks affected the network in the early hours of this morning....
Read More
Paris is getting ready to shut down it’s city centre and its airspace as well as mobilise 45,000 police and several army units in what has been billed...
Read More
Lucie Castets, the left-wing candidate for Prime Minister, reiterated her desire to lead the government during a media appearance on July 25. A poll s...
Read More
French President Emmanuel Macron is preparing to welcome world leaders to the Olympic games opening ceremony tomorrow night and has been visiting key ...
Read More
France will host the 2030 Winter Olympics in the Alpes, conditional on state and regional financial guarantees. President Macron confirmed his full su...
Read More
