Flights cancelled today due to air traffic control strike - More than 100 flights departing from and arriving at Nice airport today have been cancelled due to a nationwide strike by French air traffic controllers. Two unions are behind the strike action, protesting against what they call serious understaffing and a toxic management culture. The French civil aviation authority has asked airlines to reduce their flight schedules today, not just at Nice, but at other airports including Paris and Marseille. Short-haul flights are the most affected: including to Copenhagen, Stockholm, Frankfurt, London, Dublin and Luxembourg. If you're due to fly today, it's worth checking with your airline or on the Nice Airport website.
Homeless man found dead in Nice - In other local news, the lifeless body of a homeless man in his 60s was discovered by a passer-by near the Paillon river in Nice yesterday morning, near the Nice-Est slip road for the A8 motorway. An investigation is under way. It comes as charities working with the homeless in France have warned that the ongoing heatwave is a period of great danger for people sleeping on the street. The Foundation for Housing the Disadvantaged, formerly known as the Abbé-Pierre Foundation, said homeless people are particularly at risk of dehydration and hyperthermia and has called on cities to do more, such as providing better access to fresh drinking water. One association in Paris says its shelters to protect homeless people from the heat are full. Nice city hall has opened an air-conditioned room for people without a fixed address and is distributing free bottled water in some neighbourhoods.
'Road murder' enters French law - A road safety campaign that began on the Riviera has resulted in French lawmakers creating a new crime of "road murder". The French Senate has approved making a change to the law that recognises the offence of causing death by negligent driving such as excessive speeding, drink or drug-driving. The campaign came after a 16-year-old boy was killed in Antibes in 2022 by a driver who was speeding, drunk and under the influence of cocaine and ecstasy. The driver was jailed for involuntary manslaughter with aggravating circumstances, but walked free from prison after serving just a two-month sentence and paying €5,000 in bail. The boy’s family worked with local MPs on the draft bill to introduce the new crime of "road homicide", with tougher sanctions for drivers who kill while under the influence. Anyone found guilty of the new offence could face up to seven years in jail and a €100,000 fine - increased to 10 years in jail if there was more than one aggravating circumstance.
Taxi firm boss jailed for health insurance fraud - The manager of a medical taxi firm in the Var has been jailed for two-and-a-half years for embezzling €2.3 million from the French health insurance system. A court in Draguignan heard that over the course of four years, the woman overcharged health insurers for journeys to medical appointments that never happened. In one case, she claimed to have brought a man to hospital and back 22 times in the same day - at a cost of €4,000. Two health insurers filed a complaint in 2023 after noticing irregularities in some of the sums they had been asked to pay out. In a series of raids, police seized €1.4 million in cash, cars and sports equipment. She's been ordered to repay the stolen money and pay compensation to four health insurance funds.
Jail for drug smuggler caught at La Turbie - A bus passenger has been jailed for a year and fined €91,000 after customs officers found nine kilos of cannabis in his luggage at the La Turbie tolls. Officers had pulled over a Romanian coach on the A8 travelling from Barcelona to Bucharest and a sniffer dog singled out the suitcase in the hold. The trafficker was also issued with a 10-year ban on entering French territory. Last year, customs officers in the Alpes-Maritimes seized more than three tonnes of drugs in spot checks on the department's roads and at Nice airport.
Post offices to sell train tickets - Several post offices on the Riviera will begin an experiment into selling train tickets from September. The Sud region is testing the scheme out, as several stations no longer have staffed ticket offices - but they do still have a post office nearby. Branches in Cros-de-Cagnes, Villeneuve-Loubet and Biot will be taking part in the trial, as well as Breil-sur-Roya, Tende, L'Escarène and Sospel.
BeSafe free shuttle to prevent drink-driving - A free shuttle service to help partygoers safely return home from a night out in Monaco is back in service for another summer season. BeSafe is run by a not-for-profit association in partnership with the Monte-Carlo SBM. Until the end of August, it offers free rides home from Tuesday to Sunday, from midnight to 5am. It's intended for people who find themselves over the drink-drive limit, to encourage them not to drive home. The on-demand service can pick people up from nightclubs and other venues in Monaco, free of charge, and drop them off anywhere in the principality or the neighbouring communes of Beausoleil, Cap d'Ail and Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. In previous years the service offered to take people home as far as Nice or Menton, but this has now been scaled back for practical reasons.
BUSINESS
US media group Paramount has agreed to pay $16m to settle a lawsuit filed by Donald Trump over what he alleged was a misleading interview with the former vice president Kamala Harris. The case involving a feature on CBS News, which is owned by Paramount, has been criticised as a challenge to free speech.
Paramount has been seeking a resolution with Trump, whose administration must approve the company's proposed merger with Skydance Media - but the settlement did not involve an apology. Trump's lawyer claimed the president had suffered "anguish" over the editing of the interview, which was broadcast in October on the CBS News show 60 Minutes during the election campaign.
Japanese stocks have fallen after Donald Trump threatened 35% tariffs on Japanese imports, in an attempt to pressure Tokyo into making concessions during negotiations that he described as “very tough”. Meanwhile, markets have so far shrugged off the US Senate passing Trump’s so-called “big, beautiful bill,” as investors stayed glued to the outlook for US interest rates and trade deals, ahead of the US reimposing tariffs on 9 July. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, who has come under heavy fire from the president over the Fed’s failure to cut interest rates this year, has told an audience in Portugal that uncertainty over the impact of Trump’s tariffs prevented the Fed from lowering borrowing costs.
SPORT
Rugby Union - Tommy Freeman scored twice as the British and Irish Lions ran in eight tries in a comprehensive victory over the Queensland Reds in Brisbane. The Lions were in the lead at 21-12 at the break, before powering ahead to a 52-12 win.
Tennis - Sonay Kartal continued her impressive form at Wimbledon by becoming the first British player to reach round three this year with a dominant victory over Viktoriya Tomova. After two days of blistering heat the start to Wednesday's play was delayed by more than two hours because of rain in the morning. But once the action did begin British number three Kartal followed up her impressive first-round win against 20th seed Jelena Ostapenko by quickly despatching of Tomova 6-2 6-2. It is the second year in a row Kartal has reached the third round at Wimbledon.
Formula One - It's reported that Max Verstappen is open to leaving Red Bull to join Mercedes for the 2026 Formula 1 season with talks intensifying ahead of this weekend's British Grand Prix. Speculation about Verstappen's future ramped up at the Austrian Grand Prix last weekend when George Russell told Sky Sports F1 that he has not been given a new Mercedes contract beyond 2025 due to the team having "ongoing conversations" with Verstappen. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff confirmed there were "conversations behind closed doors" taking place. According to Sky Italy, talks have intensified, with Verstappen willing to free himself from his current Red Bull contract which runs until 2028.
Football - Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite has signed a new five-year deal with the club. The 23-year-old, who joined the Toffees from Carlisle United in January 2020, was the subject of two rejected bids from Manchester United last summer. He also attracted interest from a number of clubs this summer - including Chelsea and Tottenham. But Everton regard him as an important part of the club's plans as they move from Goodison Park to a new era at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
And Chelsea have signed Joao Pedro from Brighton in a deal worth up to £60m. The 23-year-old has signed a seven-year deal and has flown to the USA to join Enzo Maresca's side at the Club World Cup. Pedro will be able to play for Chelsea at the tournament as clubs are allowed to register players up until today's deadline. It means the Brazil international could make his Chelsea debut in the Club World Cup quarter-finals against Palmeiras in Philadelphia on Saturday and has the chance to win a trophy within his first month at the club.
WEATHER
A fine and sunny start across the Riviera, but this afternoon, thundery showers are forecast throughout most inland areas of the Var and the Alpes-Maritimes. It doesn't look the storms will reach the coast yet, where it'll be partly cloudy this afternoon. Temperatures reaching 31 degrees Celsius on the Alpes-Maritimes coast, 33 on the Var coast and 34 inland in the Var, where there'll be some strong gusts of wind later. Clear skies overnight with a gentle breeze, staying warm again with night-time temperatures of 27 degrees Celsius on the coast and 22 inland. The outlook for Friday: more of the same, fine and sunny on the coast, 31 degrees, thunderstorms inland, 34 degrees Celsius. Noticeably cooler inland in the Alpes-Maritimes tomorrow with 25 degrees Celsius in the hills by the Italian border. The outlook for the weekend: thundery showers inland in the Var on Saturday, staying fine on the coast but cooler, 29 degrees on the Alpes-Maritimes coast on Saturday. The rain is due to arrive on the coast on Sunday, with thunderstorms and showers across the region and temperatures on Saturday around 28 degrees Celsius.
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