National News France
President of Republican party kicked out of party - The president of the Republican party Eric Ciotti, who called for an alliance between his French party's candidates and Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN) following the European election results, has been unanimously kicked out of his party on Wednesday. Ciotti’s suggestion of an alliance with the far-right raised many eyebrows throughout French politics and even led to the Mayor of Nice Christian Estrosi, backtracking on a vow to never return to social media X when he took to the platform to express his anger towards his rival Ciotti. Estrosi had been absent from the social media platform for six months returned to posting the following: “Ciotti, you have decided to create an alliance with the far-right National Rally, then go ahead, locked away in your Parisian headquarters, you can’t hear the people of Nice who are disgusted by your attitude, you are a disgrace to our city”.
Macron calls for all parties to form alliance against far-right - It was also on Wednesday in a press conference the French president, Emmanuel Macron, urged all parties to form an alliance against Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally and resist the “spirit of defeatism”. With the far right at a historic high and the French political class plunged into uncertainty with less than three weeks until the first round Macron said he had dissolved parliament and called the election in order to hold back “extremes”. He said: “I do not want to give the keys to power to the far right in [the presidential election of] 2027, so I fully accept having triggered a movement to provide clarification.” He said he trusted the French people to decide whether they wanted the far right in government – he believed the nation did not want them in power and would vote to keep it out.
Number of proxies up sharply - Meanwhile, in the 48 hours following the announcement of France’s National Assembly being dissolved the number of proxy votes were up sharply compared to 2022. The early surprise of parliamentary elections being held on June 30th and July 7th saw many voters applying to vote by proxy with over 63,000 requests registered by France’s ministry of interior. Those who want to apply to vote by proxy still have plenty of time with requests being registered up until the Thursday or Friday before the vote.
Local News
Forest fire in the Var under control - The Var experienced it first major fire of the year which started in Vidauban this week and a national prevention campaign has been launched to remind the public that nine out of ten forest fires are caused by humans. Six hundred hectares were destroyed in the blaze in just a few hours and many homes had to be evacuated. No injuries were reported, and while the cause of the fire has not yet been confirmed it is believed to have been possibly accidental, caused by a tractor clearing forest land which may have hit a metal object causing sparks, leading to the fire. The investigation continues.
Nice attack trial - A Paris court will today Thursday 13th June deliver its appeal verdict against two defendants tried for their alleged role in the Nice attack which left 86 dead on July 14th, 2016. Prosecuted for terrorist conspiracy, they were both sentenced to 18 years of criminal imprisonment during the first trial in December 2022. The verdict is expected late this afternoon or early evening.
Tribute to Annie and Ben Vautier - A tribute is to be paid this Thursday morning to Annie and Ben Vautier, the artist who took his own life following the death of his wife Annie on June 5th. The public tribute will take place at 10.30am on the Promenade du Paillon in Nice. After 60 years of marriage the couple will be honoured by the people of Nice with several speeches and a performance by the Nice group Nux Vomica.
New security control centre for SBM - The Société des Bains de Mer in Monaco has inaugurated in the presence of HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco, a new security control centre. At the heart of the Carré d’or, the “SBM Security Control Centre” is connected to more than 1,200 cameras with 10,000 alarms. The biggest company in Monaco has a team trained to manage security interventions in areas such as the casino, Hôtel de Paris, the Hermitage, the One Monte-Carlo, as well as the Sporting and Monte-Carlo Beach. The security device is operational 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, thanks to two operators and a room manager present at all times.
Good year for the hospitality industry in Monaco - Finally, it’s good news for hotels, restaurants and bars here in the Principality as a new report by Monaco’s official statistical agency, IMSEE, has revealed an incredibly strong year in Monaco’s hospitality industry for 2023, during which record revenues were reached. According to the report the sector produced record revenues nearing €1 billion in 2023 with the combined revenues of the Principality’s hotels and accommodation, restaurants, bars and catering services climbing almost 15% in 2023 to reach an all-time high.
Business
Official data has suggested that US inflation has cooled slightly ahead of a decision to maintain interest rate levels at a 23-year high. Prices rose 3.3% in the year to the end of May, down 0.1 percentage points from the month before. Despite borrowing costs standing at their highest rate in years, officials at the Federal Reserve held off on any interest rate cuts this month. The US central bank held its target rate at 5.25% to 5.5% on Wednesday.
Chinese electric cars may become pricier in the European Union (EU) after politicians called them a threat to its own industry. The EU's announcement comes as it continues an investigation into what it claims is a flood of cheap, government-subsidised Chinese cars into the EU. China alleged the tariffs violated international trade rules and described the investigation as "protectionism".
And - The US has increased its sanctions on Russia, including a fresh crackdown on banks dealing with sanctioned entities. US President Joe Biden signed an executive order in December that imposed sanctions on banks dealing with about 1,200 individuals and companies deemed to be helping Russia's war machine. The programme has now been expanded to sanction foreign banks deemed to be aiding Russia’s war effort in Ukraine. Sanctions have also been placed on the Moscow stock exchange, leading to it halting trading in dollars and euros and it also moved to try to restrict Russia's use of technology, including chips and software.
Sport
Football - Kylian Mbappé will be official presented as a memer of the Real Madrid football team on July 16th. The event will take place at the Santiago-Bernabeu stadium in Madrid with a sound and light show. Mbappé officially signed with Real Madrid on June 3rd for a period of five years.
Cricket – India have reached the Super 8s despite being given a fright in a seven-wicket win over T20 World Cup co-hosts USA. India will now face Canada in their final pool match on Saturday.
Athletics - Great Britain's 22-year-old Keely Hodgkinson has successfully defended her 800m title with a dominant victory at the European Athletics Championships in Rome. Hodgkinson led throughout and held off her rivals in the closing stages to win in one minute 58.65 seconds.
Tennis - Spaniards Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal will team up to be doubles partners at next month's Olympic Games in Paris. The Games begin on 26 July with the tennis tournaments starting a day later.
Weather
Thundery showers are forecast clearing by this afternoon. A gentle breeze. Highs of 22 degrees in Nice, 20 degrees in Monaco, 23 degrees in Cannes and 24 degrees in Saint-Tropez. This evening going down to 15 degrees with clear skies.
The outlook for Friday and heading into the weekend, fine with highs of 24 – 25 degrees.
Sunrise 05.47am
Sunset 09.13pm
Sea temperature
Nice 20.2°
UV level 8
Weather elsewhere
London 17° light rain
Liverpool 15° light rain
Rome 26° sunny
And Finally
A statue of the 18th-century philosopher Voltaire has returned to the French capital. After a four-year absence following a mystery disappearance. The statue of a key figure of the Enlightenment has returned to its spot in a tiny square of Paris’s 6th arrondissement. Voltaire’s disappearance from the Square Honoré-Champion close to the left bank of the Seine behind the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 2020, prompted outrage and protests. At a time of worldwide statue toppling, Parisians feared Voltaire had fallen to “cancel culture” because of his links to the slave trade. Rumours spread that the city authorities had succumbed to pressure and hidden him away in a dark corner to avoid protests. Some feared the artefact had been destroyed, like the city’s original 1878 bronze of Voltaire that was melted down by the occupying Nazis in 1941. However, after the restoration work, the original which was damaged and fragile has been replaced by a ‘very fine’ copy.
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