Evening Update Wednesday 31 August

A shortage of teachers across France will not affect schools on the Riviera. The Secretary-General of the Nice Academy, with responsibility for schools in the Alpes-Maritimes and the Var, promised that all positions will be filled and every student will have a teacher facing them tomorrow. Across the rest of France, the Ministry of National Education report the rate of teacher positions filled is 83% this year compared to 95% in 2021.

French international tennis player, 25-year-old Fiona Ferro from Nice Lawn Tennis Club, has accused her former coach of rape and sexual assault when she was 15 years of age. In a complaint filed with police in Frejus, she says the assaults took place in Saint-Raphaël between 2012 and 2015. The coach, Pierre Bouteyre who is 50 years old, denies the charge and says any relations were consensual.

The price of petrol and diesel is set to decrease significantly from tomorrow as the French government increase their subsidy on fuel. Since April, the government has given an 18 cent rebate on each litre of petrol. That is set to increase from tomorrow to 30 cent, giving drivers another 12 cent drop in price per litre. The subsidy will remain in place during September and October when it will be adjusted again.

Prince Albert of Monaco has written to the President of Pakistan to offer condolences on the deadly flooding which has hit the country. He said it was with great emotion and sadness that his family and the population of Monaco learned of the tragedy. He also saluted the massive evacuation efforts and assured the President of Monaco’s profound solidarity in this difficult ordeal.

The film industry in Cannes has been shocked by the death of the young actress who starred in this year’s Palm d’Or winning movie Triangle of Sadness. The 32- year-old South African actress Charlbi Dean, who was in Cannes in May, died at a hospital in New York from a sudden and unexpected illness.

At Villefranche-sur-mer, police are questioning a man who set fire to a car before attacking customers at a nearby restaurant. It’s not clear what the intentions of the man were but police report he was heavily under the influence of alcohol at the time.

BUSINESS

France says it is open to reviving a gas pipeline project that could link Spain and Germany. Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said Paris would examine the possibility if it were given more details by the two countries. His comments come after a meeting of the German Chancellor and the Spanish Prime Minister in Berlin, as well as worries of Russia cutting its gas pipeline to Europe.

Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary says the airline is set for significant growth during recession. He said regardless of an economic turndown, people will still need to fly, and will choose Ryanair for a better price. The fact competitors are cutting capacity will only add to Ryanair's strong growth this winter.

Wine production in France is due to bounce back despite the winter frost and the summer drought. France’s Farm Ministry has announced that wine production should rise by 13% to 45.6 million hectolitres this year. A hectolitre is 100 litres or 133 standard bottles of wine.

SPORT

Football - French defender Wesley Fo-fana has signed a 75 million pound deal to move from Leicester to Chelsea. It’s a case of third time lucky for Chelsea as previous bids of 60 and 70 million were both rejected. Fofana, who is from Marseilles, also plays for the French Under 21 national team.

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag says he expects Cristiano Ronaldo will stay at the club beyond this summer. Ten Hag also says the club will not buy anyone else before Thursday's transfer deadline once the signings of Antony and Martin Dubravka are completed.

Tennis - The big games taking place today at the US Open include; Arthur Rinderknech from France facing world number one Daniil Medvedev, Serena Williams is taking on Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit and Britian’s Andy Murray plays American Emillo Nava, as the former champion aims to reach the third round of a grand slam for just the second time since 2018.

Meanwhile, defending champion Emma Raducanu says she is looking forward to starting with a clean slate after an early end to her US Open title defence. The 19-year-old teenager was knocked out in the first round by France’s Alize Cornet.

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