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News Macron - President Macron will address the nation on television tonight with the spread of the delta variant and his plans for the last 10 months of his first term in office expected to be the focus. Mr Macron is expected to confirm that the delta variant has now become the dominant coronavirus strain in France and will urge the public to get vaccinated as soon as possible. He’s also expected to lay out plans for more extensive use of the health pass in shops, bars and restaurants and will confirm that health care workers will be required by law to be vaccinated against the virus. The President is also expected to bring pension reform back to the table despite widespread opposition from trade unions and the left. Cannes 2021 - The French actor Pio Marmai has made an astonishing attack on President Macron at a Cannes film festival press conference to promote the Catherine Corsini movie “La Fracture” in which he stars. Mr Marmai said that he’d like to “break the President’s face” after stating that he quite liked him before he got elected. “La Fracture” deals with the relationship problems of a couple and is set with the Yellow Vest protests of 2019 in the background. Today’s competition films in Cannes are “Petrov’s Flu” a science fiction fantasy from Kirill Serebrennikov and Wes Anderson’s “The French Dispatch”, a comedy drama with star studded cast which includes Timothee Chalamet, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton and Lea Seydoux. It’s set in a fictional twentieth century French city that brings to life a collection of stories published in “The French Dispatch” magazine. The film goes on general release today and is screening at cinemas in Cannes and up and down the Côte d’Azur. Fatal accident - Police are hunting for 3 men who fled from the scene of a fatal accident in which a motorcyclist was killed on Sunday morning. The accident happened when the Italian registered car collided head on with a motorbike at around 6 am in Mandelieu. The victim was found lying in the road after the 3 occupants of the car had run away without going to his assistance. Emergency services were unable to save him and he died at the scene. Still no water - Residents of Roquefort les Pins are becoming increasingly angry as a ban on drinking tap water enters its third week. The water company has apologised but says that levels of lead and nickel in tap water are still too high and it’s not safe for consumption. An online petition has been started to get the problem fixed. You can sign it here. Stay safe - Riviera Radio continues to warn you to stay safe when out and about on the Côte d’Azur. Dozens of thefts along with violence and other unpleasant incidents are reported daily and you need to keep your wits about you at all times. It’s a good idea not to carry large amounts of cash with you or to wear an expensive watch or jewellery. Photocopy your ID instead of taking the original out with you and only carry one bank card. Driver held - A man who crashed an Audi A1 into a shop front in central Nice on Saturday is still being held by police. Witnesses say that the car, which was being driven at high speed crashed into a chemists shop at the corner of the avenue Felix Faure and the rue Alberti at around ten past three on Saturday afternoon. A young woman who was with her two children was seriously injured in the incident and is being treated in Pasteur 2 hospital. The two children suffered shock but were otherwise unhurt. The man driving the car was alone and not injured. He’s being held by police in Nice pending further enquiries. Collapsed ceiling - The management of the Super U convenience store in the centre of Cannes where the false ceiling collapsed last Thursday has been giving away its perishable goods to associations for the poor including the Cannes Red Cross and the Restos du Coeur charity. Some 8,000 products which would otherwise have gone to waste have been donated and will be distributed to those in need today. The ceiling of the store was brought down as a result of a water leak. Fortunately, nobody was seriously injured. The shop will be closed for several weeks while repairs are carried out. Business Finance Ministers from the G20 group of nations have warned that an upsurge in new coronavirus variants and poor access to vaccines in developing countries is threatening the global economic recove |
