Evening Update Tuesday 21 May

In a controversial measure, the Nice-Côte d'Azur metropolitan council has voted in favour of donating over half a million euros to the rebuilding of Notre Dame Cathedral. The amount to be donated represents one euro per inhabitant of the Métropole Nice-Côte d'Azur, meaning that the precise amount is 544,819.00 euros.

The mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, has congratulated police on arrests made this morning in connection with a drugs reselling network. The mayor said that about 15 people had been detained.  Reports say that the arrests were made on boulevard Henri-Sappia in the Las Planas district of northern Nice after several months of work by the authorities.

Traffic was disrupted in central Nice this afternoon after a bus became lodged between two lanes of a road.  The bus was attempting to drive around a construction area when it became stuck on a yellow central separator which divides the bus lane from other traffic. The municipal police and representatives of Lignes d'Azur were on site to deal with the incident on Place Wilson.

The Palais de Carnoles public park in Menton was evacuated this afternoon after the discovery of an unexploded shell.  A nearby tennis court and the Menton Museum of Fine Arts were also evacuated before bomb disposal personnel removed the shell. The area has now reopened.

La Poste staff at the mail centre in La Garde have been on strike today, affecting deliveries of post in La Garde and Le Pradet. They are protesting at the consolidation of 17 postal rounds into 14, which unions say is leaving staff exhausted.

As part of a new measure to reduce noise levels in several areas of Nice, the city council has announced that all street artists will have to register with the town hall and respect new regulations. As part of the new measure, street musicians will be limited to playing up to two hours in the same place. The new measure has faced criticism with more than 10,000 people signing a petition.

BUSINESS

The OECD has raised its growth forecast for the UK to 1.2% this year, up from 0.8%. But that would still be the weakest growth in ten years. It also cut its forecast for world growth to 3.2% this year.

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s restaurant group has gone into administration, according to reports, putting up to 1,300 jobs at risk. In total, 25 restaurants are affected by the move.

The founder of Huawei has remained defiant towards US moves against his company, saying the US "underestimates" its abilities.  Last week the US added Huawei to a list of companies that American firms cannot trade with unless they have a licence. However, last night the US Commerce Department issued a temporary licence that enabled some US companies to continue supporting existing Huawei networks and devices. Meanwhile, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire has said a decision on 5G would be based on security and performance of networks and said no individual operator would be made unwelcome. Last week President Macron said France did not intend to block Huawei.

SPORT

Cricket…Jofra Archer, Tom Curran and Liam Dawson have been named in England's World Cup squad, with David Willey and Joe Denly missing out. England begin their campaign with the opening match against South Africa at The Oval on 30 May.

Football...Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud has signed a new contract with the club. His new deal extends his stay at Stamford Bridge until the end of next season. Giroud joined Chelsea from Arsenal in January 2018.

Rugby Union… Former Australia captain George Smith has announced his retirement from professional rugby at the age of 38. He’s the second most-capped Australian forward of all time, having played 111 times for the Wallabies. He’s recently been playing on a short-term contract with English Premiership side Bristol Bears.

Motorsports…Tributes are continuing to be paid to Formula 1 legend Niki Lauda who died at the age of 70 yesterday. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said that he combined heroism, humanity and honesty inside and outside the cockpit. Former world champion Damon Hill said that Lauda was a remarkable individual in every way and was thoughtful, intelligent and pragmatic. Red Bull driver Max Verstappen described him as a “true legend”.