France to reject complaints about the sounds of the countryside - France’s parliament has adopted a law in an effort to put an end to hundreds of noise complaints every year, from unhappy neighbours. Most of the complaint cases are from city dwellers who arrive in the countryside for peace and quiet. France’s justice minister, Éric Dupond-Moretti, said last year when the law was introduced to parliament that “those who move to the countryside cannot demand that country people who feed them change their way of life”. When tackled about the issue at the agriculture salon in Paris in March, he added it was “surreal that courts were being clogged up with disputes about cows mooing at night”. From now on people who decide to live near, next to or above an existing farm, shop, bar or restaurant cannot complain about the noise or other inconveniences.
French judges have in the past seen a number of cases, including neighbours annoyed by Maurice the noisy rooster, who survived a legal attempt to silence him in 2019. Ducks, geese, cows and even cicadas have faced attempts to shut them up. In May last year, gendarmes turned up at the home of 92-year-old Colette Ferry to remove three frogs from her garden pond following complaints from the neighbours. From now on, people who decide to live near, next to or above an existing farm, shop, bar or restaurant cannot complain about the noise or other inconveniences.
A new optional regional transport tax for businesses, introduced in France’s 2025 budget, aims to fund eco-friendly mobility projects. ...
Read More
A judge has authorised a dive to inspect the wreckage of a plane in the sea off Antibes. The plane crashed into the Mediterranean on September 11 1968...
Read More
In France, drinking water is heavily contaminated with "forever pollutants," particularly trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), as revealed by two studies from ...
Read More
The trial of the Tunisian man accused of the murder of three people in the Nice Basilica attack is continuing in Paris. Yesterday the families of the ...
Read More
Four cities in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (PACA) region made Booking.com's 2025 list of the "most welcoming destinations in France." ...
Read More
