French and Riviera News Thursday 10th November 2022

News

Strike - Several demonstrations have been organised today as part of a National Day of Strike action in France as unions put pressure on the French government to obtain an increase in wages. Several sectors are expected to be affected by today’s strike in particular transport. No trams are running in Nice and there will be disruptions and cancellations on both the bus and train network. You can check specific trains on www.sncf.com. A reminder that Friday the 11th of November is a public holiday in France and reduced services will be in place on public transport. Meanwhile, in the French capital today, demonstrators are set to gather at 2pm this afternoon at the Place de la République. Other gatherings are planned in large cities, such as Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse and Lille.

ORSAN plan triggered in French hospitals - Faced with the spread of the bronchiolitis epidemic, France’s health minister has triggered the implementation of the ORSAN plan in all French hospitals. Created in 2014, the ORSAN device, which stands for the “organisation of the response of the health system in an exceptional health situation”, makes it possible to "reorganize the supply of care" in hospitals “calling on doctors and caregivers across the medical sector both public and private to intervene.

Ocean Viking migrant boat could dock in Toulon - The Ocean Viking migrant boat could dock in the port of Toulon in the coming days. The humanitarian boat and its 234 migrants, currently stranded in the Mediterranean Sea is the subject of a showdown between France and Italy. According to the European Commission "the situation on board the ship has reached a critical level and must be resolved urgently to avoid a humanitarian tragedy. Questioned this Wednesday evening by the Var-Matin, the town hall of Toulon indicates that ‘they have not been asked about the possibility" despite the visit to Toulon by Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday. The mayor of Toulon has said that “a solution must be found quickly by the State because it is obviously unimaginable to let human beings die at sea".

Young woman in a critical condition following road accident - A 20-year-old woman has been seriously injured in an accident in Nice. The accident occurred on Wednesday afternoon shortly after 2pm on Blvd Bischoffsheim when a van collided with a moped. Traffic came to a standstill for nearly 45 minutes while emergency services intervened on the boulevard which leads to the Grande Corniche. The young woman was taken to Pasteur hospital in a critical condition. The driver of the van has been placed in police custody.

Carpooling app - The Nice Cote d'Azur Metropolis has launched its own carpooling app. Klaxit is available on the Apple App store and the Google Play store. The Metropolis is making a financial contribution. Journeys of less than 5 km are not being given aid but for eligible journeys whose distance is greater than or equal to 5 km, the aid is 10 cents per kilometre started. There are several conditions attached to the provision of the financial aid. More details can be found on www.nicecotedazur.org

Survey - According to an Elabe survey nearly three quarters of French people (73%) feel that their purchasing power has deteriorated (+16 points in one year). With the rise in prices, the vast majority of French people say that they will in some situations have to “go without” as 85% of respondents say they have to "tighten their belts". 51% of French people say they are putting a stop to shopping and going out (+19 points in one year). Nearly one in two (48%, +13 points) admit to giving up on going on holiday or for a weekend break. Concerning the purchasing power measures taken by the French government in recent months, 47% (+8 points since September 28, 2022) of French people think that they have not improved the situation in terms of purchasing power. 44% (-4 points) consider that they are going in the right direction but are insufficient and 8% (-4 points) say they are satisfied.

Route du Rhum - Briton Sam Goodchild has had to abandon the Route du Rhum after he suffered several injuries to his arms and face after just 30 minutes of racing on Wednesday. 137 skippers are taking part in the race which left Saint-Malo on Wednesday heading for Guadeloupe. Meanwhile, Oren Nataf (Rayon Vert) member of the Monaco Yacht Club was forced to return to the starting point aboard his multihull. The first sailors should arrive in Guadeloupe within a week.

Business

A new grey badge which was intended to appear on all tweets from government accounts, companies, but also from the media and public figures, provided that the social network was able to formally identify the account has had a short shelf life after new boss of Twitter Elon Musk deleted it. On November 9, the traditional blue badge was briefly replaced by a new grey one accompanied by the mention “Official”, in order to avoid any identity theft. Now removed, the grey badge leaves a social network with no way for internet users to tell genuine accounts from fake ones.

Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden says Elon Musk's relationships with foreign countries are "worthy of being looked at". Mr Biden was asked whether Mr Musk posed a national security threat and if Saudi Arabia helping him to buy Twitter should be investigated. During a news conference at the White House on Wednesday a reporter asked Mr Biden: "Do you think Elon Musk is a threat to US national security and should the US, with the tools you have, investigate his joint acquisition of Twitter with foreign governments, which include the Saudis?". Mr Biden said that "Elon Musk's cooperation and/or technical relationships with other countries is worthy of being looked at”.

Binance, the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange, has walked away from a bailout deal of its smaller rival FTX. Binance said that after due diligence, it would not pursue the deal. It said reports of "mishandled customer funds and alleged US agency investigations" had swayed its decision. FTX had been struggling with a surge in withdrawals that caused a "liquidity crunch".

In the UK the chief executive of High Street chain Next is urging the government to let more foreign workers into the UK to alleviate chronic labour shortages. Lord Wolfson, who was a prominent advocate of Brexit, said the UK's current immigration policy was crippling economic growth. He said firms should pay a tax to employ foreign workers, to encourage them to recruit from the UK first.

Sport

Football - Former England striker Alan Shearer has predicted England will be knocked out in the quarter-finals at the World Cup. Gareth Southgate's side reached the semi-finals at the 2018 World Cup in Russia and they lost to Italy in the Euro 2020 final at Wembley last summer. England could meet France in the last eight if both nations win their respective groups and last-16 ties. Speaking at the launch of The Athletic's Emergency Football Hotline Shearer said "I don't see us going as far as we have done in the last two tournaments”.

Robert Page has named his 26-man squad for Wales' first World Cup in 64 years, with midfielder Joe Allen included despite being a major injury doubt.

Cricket – Today will see the T20 World Cup semi-final play out between India and England.

Golf - Tiger Woods has announced that he will return to action in next month's Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas. Woods, 46, has not played since the Open Championship at St Andrews in July, when he missed the cut. The 15-time major winner, who suffered severe leg injuries in a car crash last year, has only played nine competitive rounds in 2022.

Weather

Sunny intervals. Highs of 20 degrees in Monaco, Nice and Saint Tropez with a gentle breeze. This evening going down to 13 degrees with clear skies.

The outlook for tomorrow and heading in to the weekend – Sunny with a moderate breeze highs of 21 degrees.

Sunrise                                              Sunset

07.17hr                                             17.10hr

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