National News
Fire at Rouen’s Cathedral extinguished - Firefighters in Rouen, Normandy, have managed to extinguish a fire in the city’s world-famous gothic cathedral which broke out on Thursday lunchtime. France’s culture minister confirmed that the blaze in the spire had been extinguished and all works of art saved. The Gothic landmark is currently under renovation work. Officials have not said how the blaze started.
France’s National Rally threatens to censor a government which includes certain far left or ecologist ministers - France’s National Rally has said that they will “censor any government” which includes ministers from the far left La France Insoumise or the ecologist party. Marine Le Pen is trying to clarify her party's position regarding a possible New Popular Front government in France.
French President defends Biden - Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron, who is currently at the NATO summit in Washington and has still not addressed the French on the political turmoil at home, has defended US President Joe Biden saying he is “in charge and on top of matters”. His comments came after Biden mistakenly referred to the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as Russian President Vladimir Putin before correcting himself. Macron told reporters “We all slip up sometimes,” before adding “it’s happened to me, and it could happen again. I would ask for your indulgence.” Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, in a press conference of his own, avoided answering the question as to whether Biden was fit enough to run for the US presidency. He instead praised Biden for his role in organizing and leading what he says was a successful meeting of the NATO alliance.
Local
Ban on fireworks - The prefecture of the Alpes Maritimes has announced a ban on the sale of fireworks ahead of the Fete nationale or Bastille Day this Sunday July 14th. The ban is in place from today through until 11pm on Monday.
Road accident - Nine people have been injured, including one seriously, in a road accident involving a lorry on the A8 in Roquebrune-sur-Argens. The accident occurred at around 11.30am. The cause of the accident is not yet known. Traffic was affected in the area.
Court orders destruction of illegally built bungalows - The criminal court in Nice has ordered the destruction of and imposed a heavy fine on the owner, after bungalows were built illegally near the Plage Mala in Cap d’Ail. Hidden from view the buildings overlook the Mala beach, located close to the railway. On Thursday July 11th, the Nice court sentenced the owner of the premises, to a fine of 200,000 euros and ordered the demolition of the illegal constructions within six months.
Heavy traffic announced for this holiday weekend – Finally, Bison Futé has warned that this national holiday weekend will be difficult on the roads in France, particularly in the northwest. From today Friday 12th July, roads from the Loire Atlantique to the Pas de Calais are classified as red and the rest of the country orange. Saturday is red for the west, centre and the Alpes with an orange classification for the rest of the country.
Business
According to the UBS Global Wealth Report, France had 2.87 million millionaires in 2023, making it the fourth country in the world just behind the United Kingdom with the greatest number of millionaires. France saw its number of millionaires increase in 2023 with 47,000 more than the previous year. This, however, was not the case for the United States which lost 800,000 and China which lost 200,000. On the other hand, one country has made a spectacular leap in just one year by gaining more than 500,000 millionaires: the United Kingdom. With just over three million millionaires, it is now on the world podium (6th a year earlier) dislodging France which was third in 2022. The report showed that the number of millionaires on the planet has broken a record and that their fortune has never been higher. However, the forecast is that France which is in the euro zone, should experience the strongest growth in five years with a gain of 16% to more than 3.3 million. The authors of the study are betting that the transfer of financial activities from London will benefit Paris and in addition, France remains until now the leading destination for foreign investors as well as for international tourism. A position that the country should consolidate in the years to come according to UBS. If that is the French political uncertainty does not break the dynamic.
The Apple Vision Pro headset is to arrive in France as it falls short of the expectations expressed by specialists at the time of its release in the US. While its international launch could change the trend, the first mixed reality headset, which was launched with great fanfare by Tim Cook, Apple's CEO, in February 2024, has proved to be a bit of a flop up until now. According to figures from IDC, reported by Bloomberg, the headset has not yet reached 100,000 quarterly sales. Which, over an entire year, would represent less than 500,000 sales on American soil. The first-generation Vision Pro has been available for pre-order in France up until today Friday July 12, when it will go on sale in France for a cool 4,000 euros.
Sport
Football – England is preparing for Sunday’s Euro 2024 final against Spain and manager Gareth Southgate has said that the team will have to be "tactically perfect" to beat Spain in the final. England managed to book their first appearance in a major final on foreign soil with a 2-1 victory over the Netherlands in their semi-final on Wednesday. It's the third time in the past four major competitions that Southgate has guided England to the semi-final stage of either the Euros or the World Cup. Southgate says three-time winners Spain are the "favourites" for the final as England's men bid to win their first Euros title. The final kicks off at 9pm French time on Sunday 14th July.
Tennis – Jasmine Paolini has become the first Italian to reach a Wimbledon women's singles final. In one of the best matches of the tournament, Paolini missed two match points and was 8-7 behind in the 10-point tie-break before recovering to clinch an incredible victory. The match lasted two hours 51 minutes, making it the longest women's singles semi-final at Wimbledon, with the Italian winning 2-6 6-4 7-6 (10-8).
Cycling - Biniam Girmay sprinted to his third victory at this year's Tour de France. Stage 13 takes place today. It’s a relatively flat 165.3km route from Agen to Pau.
Formula One – Six grands prix are to host a sprint format in 2025. The races, which feature a shorter race on the Saturday before the main event on the Sunday, start with the second grand prix of the season in China on 21-23 March. Belgium hosted a sprint previously in 2023. The 2025 F1 season starts in Australia on 14-16 March.
Cricket – International bowler James Anderson took two wickets in his final innings to help put England on course for a huge win over West Indies in the first Test at Lord’s.
Weather
Mostly cloudy, clearing by this afternoon giving way to sunny intervals and clear skies along the coastline of the Alpes Maritimes and most of the Var by this evening. Light rain is forecast for Toulon. Scattered showers inland in Puget Théniers with thunderstorms by this evening. Winds picking up in the Var by this evening with gusts of 45km/hr.
Highs of 28 degrees in Nice and Monaco, 34 degrees in Saint-Tropez. This evening going down to 23 degrees with clear skies.
The outlook for the weekend. Fine and sunny, highs of 35 degrees. Moderate to strong winds in the Var and to the east of the Alpes Maritimes in Cannes by Saturday afternoon. Sunday fine with a gentle breeze.
Sunrise 05.59am
Sunset 09.12pm
Sea temperature
Hyeres 24°
UV level 9
Air temperature 28°
Winds picking up by the evening with gusts of up to 45km/hr
Weather elsewhere
Madrid 33° sunny.
Rome 35° sunny.
Oslo 22° sunny intervals.
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