French and Riviera News October 21st 2021

News 

Police actively searching individual suspected of having beheaded a man - Police in the Vaucluse are actively searching for an individual suspected of having beheaded a man. The 37-year-old man is suspected of being the perpetrator of a homicide and is on the run in the Bollène area, between Montélimar and Orange in the Vaucluse. Armed with a knife, he is described as dangerous. The local city council has called on residents to stay at home. The man, who has short black hair, is "potentially dangerous and armed”. Any witnesses who come into contact with him are advised to contact the police immediately.

Tribute to Jean-Francois Renucci - Colleagues, students and staff of the University of Nice-Sophia Antipolis have paid tribute to professor Jean-François Renucci an expert in criminal sciences, who was killed in a road accident on the Moyenne Corniche this week describing it as an “immense loss” and holding a minute's silence on Wednesday morning. Also a magistrate in Monaco, Renucci died after he lost control of his car on Tuesday morning crashing into a cliff near Eze.

Two cyclists slightly injured after collision with a car - Two cyclists have been slightly injured in an accident on the seafront in Cannes. The accident occurred on Wednesday afternoon on the Boulevard du Midi when they collided with a car. Both were taken to hospital. Traffic in the area was interrupted while emergency services intervened.

Train des Merveilles hits herd of wild boars - Train traffic has been interrupted on the “Train des Merveilles” route between Peille and L’Escarène after it hit a herd of wild boar. The incident occurred on Wednesday morning at around 9.15 on the Nice to Tende train. One animal was killed another injured. The Train des Merveilles, also known as the Tenda line, is the cross-border railway line in the hinterland of Nice and Italy.

Bouncer saved by bulletproof vest - A bouncer of the well-known night club in Old Nice the Blue Whales, has been saved by his bulletproof vest. The incident occurred during the night from Tuesday to Wednesday when the employee was assaulted in front of the establishment. An investigation has been opened by police.  

Runners attempt to beat world record - Nine runners from Kenya are to attempt to beat two world records in road running at the Paul-Ricard circuit in Castellet in the Var. Six men and three women will set off to tackle world times over two long distances today Thursday, October 21, at 7am. The event will not be open to the public but can be followed live on social networks.

Prom Classic registration open - Meanwhile registrations for the Prom Classic are now open. The event which will take place on Sunday January 9th, 2022, will see the return of the 10 km race on the Promenade des Anglais. For the first 1000 registered, a preferential rate is on offer at 19 euros, it will then increase to 22 euros, then 25 euros. For more information go to http://www.promclassic.com/

Up, Up and Away! - The Air Festival kicks off this weekend in Fréjus in the Var. Giant kites will return to the skies on Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th October, from 10am to 6pm. There will also be workshops for children to model their own kites. In total, around 150 kite flyers are expected representing 10 nations to compete against each other. Entry and parking is free.

Morocco suspends flights with Germany, the Netherlands and the UK - Morocco has suspended flights with Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom due to the rise in the number of covid cases. According to authorities the decision was taken "due to the evolution of the pandemic" in these three countries. Faced with a rise in Covid-19 infections, the British government said on Tuesday to "monitor very closely" a new sub-variant ("AY4.2") of the highly contagious Delta spreading in the United Kingdom. The UK is facing a growing number of positive cases, now exceeding 40,000 every day, a much higher incidence rate than in the rest of Europe. The number of contaminations is also on the rise in the Netherlands and Germany.

Western and northern France hit by strong gales - The west and the north of France has been hit by strong gales. Nine departments were placed on an orange weather alert on Wednesday evening due to strong winds. Roads were cut off, roofs blown off and power cuts reported. Emergency services in the Loire-Atlantique reported falling trees issuing in the early evening a message of caution to local residents to not go out. No injuries were reported. Meteo France has this morning placed in total 17 departments in Northern France on alert, including the Paris region, due to Storm Aurora.

Latest poll shows that purchasing power is main concern for French ahead of elections - According to the latest Elabe poll published today Wednesday 20th October ahead of the presidential election of 2022 the French are most concerned by purchasing power followed by security and immigration third. For 45% of French respondents purchasing power is a priority. While purchasing power has increased since the start of Emmanuel Macron's mandate, nearly six in ten French people (57%) say they feel that it has, for them, fallen since 2017.

Business

France’s Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire has announced the bonus for the purchase of an electric vehicle will be extended into January of next year. The Minister of the Economy promised to continue "to financially support" households "towards the ecological transition". The bonus of 6,000 euros to encourage the purchase of an electric vehicle will be maintained in January. Le Maire went on to say that "the cost of the ecological transition will indeed, be staggering and it will be the role of the State to encourage a change to move towards low-carbon uses and at the same time to provide financial support”.

Meanwhile researchers have claimed that French oil company TotalEnergies knew at least 50 years ago about a link between burning fossil fuels and global warming. Researchers found that an article from 1971 in the company's magazine, Total Information, mentioned partial melting of ice caps. It also predicted the rise of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The company denied it had concealed climate risk and added that since 2015 it had focused on renewable energy.

According to figures from Urssaf, there has been a new historic peak in recruitment in France. 2.44 million declarations of people being hired were recorded over a month in the third quarter, 12.8% higher than the previous one in the first quarter of 2019. France had never recorded so many permanent contracts and fixed-term contracts of more than one month in a quarter, since January 2000.

The UK has agreed a free trade deal with New Zealand which it says will benefit consumers and businesses. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the deal will cut costs for exporters and open up New Zealand's job market to UK professionals. The government hopes it is a step towards joining a trade club with the likes of Canada and Japan.

The queen of cryptocurrencies Bitcoin has posted an increase of more than 450% over one year. The price of bitcoin soared on Wednesday to new historic highs, crossing for the first time the threshold of 65,000 driven by the launch on Wall Street the day before of a first financial product opening access to cryptocurrency to any investor with a securities account. The cryptocurrency, which traded for less than a dollar twelve years ago, peaked during the session at $ 66,273 around 4 p.m. in Paris, up more than 50% on a month and more than 450% on a year.

Sport 

Football - Cristiano Ronaldo headed the winner nine minutes from time as Manchester United came back from two goals down to record a memorable Champions League triumph against Atalanta at Old Trafford winning 3-2.

Cycling - Great Britain's youthful team sprint squad of Milly Tanner, Blaine Ridge-Davis, Sophie Capewell and Lauren Bate took bronze at the first day of the World Championships in Roubaix, France. The team saw off Japan in the bronze-medal final, coming home more than half a second clear in 48.059 seconds. Germany secured gold, retaining their title in a world record time of 46.064 seconds. GB's medal is a first in the women's team sprint since 2014.

Rugby Union - Head coach Gregor Townsend says the next stage of Scotland's evolution is to develop the belief they can beat any team in the world. Townsend named 12 uncapped players in his squad for the upcoming Autumn Nations Series against Tonga, Australia, South Africa and Japan. The Scots now also boast eight British and Irish Lions.

Cricket - Sri Lanka have qualified for the Super 12s stage of the Men's T20 World Cup with a 70-run win over Ireland. Sri Lanka will top group A if they beat bottom-placed Netherlands.

Weather 

Cloudy with scattered showers across the Alpes Maritimes and the Var. Highs of 22 in Nice with a fresh breeze. 22 degrees in Saint Tropez with moderate winds. This evening going down to 15 degrees in the Alpes Maritimes and 12 degrees in the Var with clear skies.

Outlook for Friday and heading into the weekend - Clear skies highs of 21-22 degrees.