Local
Exam results - It’s the moment of truth this morning for high school students across the region as they await their baccalaureate results. Following the threat of strike action from some examiners the academy of Nice has confirmed that all results will be available for students in the Alpes Maritimes and the Var from 10am this morning. You can also download an alert from France Info if you wish to obtain the results online.
Forest fire - A forest fire has broken out in Lucéram following a lightning strike. Forty firefighters were at the scene shortly after 5pm on Thursday as two hectares of land were ravaged by the flames. Firefighters remained throughout the night after having managed to control the flames with reinforcements expected in the area this morning.
Severe fire risk – Meanwhile five forest areas in the Var have been placed on a "very severe" fire risk due to the hot weather with the Prefecture of the Var closing all access to the public.
And a level 2 pollution alert is in force once again in the Var today. That means the continuation of the 20km per hour reduction in speed limits, without falling below 70km per hour.
Drunk and disorderly - Police in Villeneuve Loubet have taken new measures to crack down on drunk and disorderly behavior with a 120 euro fine. The amount is reportedly to cover the cost of transportation of people arrested in a state on drunkenness and placed in a police cell to sober up.
Investment in the region’s train network - A plan to invest 600 million euros to multiply the frequency of TER trains in the Alpes-Maritimes by 2033 has been unveiled. The new Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur line will see a new infrastructure in Nice, Cannes and Antibes. The project will mean one TER every 10 minutes.
Missing person found dead – Police in the Var have discovered the body of Jean Marc Sandré, the businessman from Cavalaire sur mer who disappeared on June 3rd. An autopsy carried out on Thursday has confirmed homicide.
National
Tiger mosquito - French authorities have urged people to be vigilant as the tiger mosquito – which can transmit deadly tropical diseases such as dengue fever, chikungunya and zika – continues to bug the country.
Half of all French departments have been colonised by the “particularly invasive” mosquitoes, with experts warning that by 2030, the entire French metropolitan area will likely be hit – including urban areas. According to health authority La Direction Générale de la Santé, tiger mosquito populations in France have doubled in the past two years.
Since the tiger mosquito first showed up in 2004, France’s health ministry has released yearly updates of affected areas. The first cases of tropical diseases in France were reported in 2010. Since then, 22 cases of dengue and 31 cases of Chikungunya have been recorded.
Traffic - If you’re heading off on holiday today Bison Futé has warned of heavy traffic from today and over the weekend on most major roads to the south and coastal areas of France, advising motorists to take extra care and avoid the busiest times by leaving before 6am or after 8pm.
Business
The UK bookmaker William Hill says that it plans to close around 700 betting shops which could lead to 4,500 job losses.
The company said that the decision was made in the wake of the British government’s decision in April to reduce the maximum stake on fixed-odds betting terminals to 2 pounds.
William Hill said that since then ,it had seen a “significant fall” in gaming machine revenues.
The firm has 2,300 shops in the UK and some 12,500 employees. The closures could start before the end of the year.
Other bookmakers could follow suit but critics say that betting firms should have anticipated the new legislation and are making vast revenues anyway from other sources including online gambling where there are no restrictions on how much people can bet.
BMW and Daimler have announced that developers from both firms are to team up to develop automated driving technology.
The firms are coming together in a bid to stem shrinking margins and the partnership will focus on developing technology for assisted driving systems ,automated motorway driving and automated parking.
The technology will be implemented in cars independently.
Earlier this year ,both BMW and Daimler issued profit warnings as international trade conflicts and narrowing margins due to tougher emissions legislation start to bite.
Meanwhile ,Volkswagen and Ford are reported to be in the final stage of talks about a strategic alliance to jointly develop self-driving and electric cars.
And-Jaguar Land Rover is set to announce investment worth hundreds of millions of pounds in electric vehicle making.
The money is to be used to prepare the firm’s Castle Bromwich plant in the English Midlands for assembling electric cars.
A six week shutdown will be necessary to complete the transformation but the move is expected to save hundreds of jobs.
The development will mean the end for the XJ model in its current petrol and diesel form which has been made since 1968.
Earlier this year Jaguar Land Rover said that it would be cutting 4,500 jobs with the majority coming from the UK.
Sport
AEROPORT DE NICE –QATAR AIRWAYS FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP REPORT.
The last two games are being played at the World Cup this weekend at the end of what’s been a highly successful tournament for the host nation France and the organisers Fifa.
England will face Sweden in Nice tomorrow afternoon at 5pm for the third placed playoff with both sides looking to put the disappointment of losing in the semi-finals.
Tickets are still available by going to the Fifa website.
On Sunday the World Cup Final will be played at 5pm in Lyon between the USA and the Netherlands.
The USA are looking for their 4th World Cup triumph while the Netherlands will be seeking victory in only their second ever appearance at a World Cup finals.
Football-Frank Lampard has signed a 3 year contract to become the Chelsea head coach 5 years after he left the club as a player.
The 41 year old says that taking the job is the “biggest challenge of his career” with some saying that he doesn’t have enough experience in management to take such a high profile job.
Lampard said that he had not set any targets for the coming season but accepted that a top four finish was the minimum expected by fans.
Tennis-Rafael Nadal is through to the third round of Wimbledon after winning a fiery second round encounter against Nick Kyrgios on Thursday.
The third seed had to face a barrage of hostile comments from his opponent who served underarm twice as he attempted to cause maximum distraction.
Nadal eventually came through 6-3 3-6 7-6 7-6 and will now face Jo-Wilfred Tsonga.
There were also second round wins for Roger Federer and Kei Nishikori ,both of who beat British opponents.
In the women’s event ,the top seed Angelique Kerber is out ,beaten in the second round by world number 95 Lauren Davis while the top seed Ashleigh Barty ,the 6th seed Petra Kvitova and the 9th seed Sloane Stephens all progressed.
Andy Murray won his opening doubles match with partner Pierre-Hugues Herbert as they beat Marius Copil and Ugo Humbert in four sets.
Cricket-West Indies beat Afghanistan by 23 runs in the World Cup at Headingly on Thursday but neither side can make the semi-finals.
Attention switches to Lords today where Pakistan will need a virtually impossible huge win against Bangladesh if they’re to have any chance of making the last 4.Play starts at 11.30.
The final semi-final placings will be decided tomorrow after Australia play South Africa and India play Sri Lanka.
It looks most likely that Australia will finish top of the pile with India in second place,England in third and New Zealand in 4th.
That would mean a semi-final line up of Australia against New Zealand and India against England.
Rugby Union-Prop Joe Marler has come out of international retirement and will join up with England’s World Cup training squad.
The 29 year old retired from England duty in September last year having won 59 caps.
He now says that he has a desire to return.
Cycling-The Tour de France gets underway with the Grand Depart in Brussels tomorrow.
Geraint Thomas is the defending champion but says that he feels under no pressure heading into the gruelling 3 week race.
Thomas crashed out of the Tour de Suisse last month but is fully fit and says that he’s been training hard as he bids to win the race for the second time.
The race will end on the Champs Elysee in Paris on Sunday the 28th of July.
Weather
Clear skies with moderate westerly winds across the Var.
Top temperatures 30-33 in coastal areas , 32-36 degrees inland.
Overnight lows of 24 degrees on the coast and 21 degrees inland with clear skies.
The weekend-Fine in coastal areas ,thunderstorms inland tomorrow.Highs of 29-36 degrees.
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