French and Riviera News Thursday 9th June 2022

News

Fatal road accident - A motorcyclist has died following a collision with a heavy goods vehicle in Grasse. The accident occurred on Wednesday shortly after 5.30pm on the Avenue Félix-Raybaud. The exact circumstances of the collision remain to be determined. Despite the intervention of the emergency services, the man in his fifties was declared dead at the scene.

Strike action to affect flights from Paris Charles de Gaulle - Due to a strike, a quarter of flights departing from Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport will be cancelled this morning Thursday 9th June. The strike action is by the airport staff who are demanding salary increases. The Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC) has asked companies to reduce their number of flights between 7am and 2pm, at a time when several European airports have recently faced enormous difficulties in managing travellers due to a lack of staff.

No public swimming pool in Annot this summer due to drought - The town of Annot, in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, has announced that it will, this summer, do without its public swimming pool, which is usually open from June to the end of August. The move comes due to the “worrying” drought situation in the region.

Access to forest areas prohibited due to risk of forest fires - Meanwhile, access to forest areas in the Var remains closed today Thursday 9th June, following a ban by the prefecture at midday on Wednesday due to the risk of forest fires. With the extremely dry conditions and wind forecast today the authorities say the risk is high and specify that all access, traffic and parking in these areas throughout the Var is prohibited.

Number of burglaries in the Alpes Maritimes - France’s Ministry of the Interior has unveiled statistics on the number of burglaries in the main municipalities of the Alpes-Maritimes in 2021, as well as their evolution since 2016. With the number burglaries declining from 6,789 in 2017 to 3,324 in 2021 the data showed that in 2021 Opio topped the list for the most burglaries with nearly 8 burglaries per 1,000 inhabitants, ahead of Mougins (7.8) and Eze (7.3). Nice is in 6th position with 6.9 burglaries per 1,000 inhabitants.

Europe switches to 100% electric cars in 2035 - According to a text adopted by the European Parliament on Wednesday, motorists and manufacturers, will have to change their habits as Europe switches to 100% electric cars in 2035. After months of debate and intense lobbying, MEPs voted to end the sale of (new) petrol, diesel and hybrid cars in 2035. Petrol and diesel vehicles will still be able to drive in the EU after 2035. The law only concerns the sale of new vehicles. Europe will be the first major market to switch ahead of China and the United States, but Norway has already set a deadline of 2025 and Israel of 2030.

Could the Tour de France 2024 end in Nice instead of the Champs-Elysées? - According to reports a change to the programming of the Tour 2024, could be possible as the last stage on July 21st is five days before the opening ceremony of the Paris-2024 Olympics. Speaking on Wednesday about the possibility the mayor of Nice Christian Estrosi said that "to date, we have not confirmed anything however, if the Tour de France were to look for a host city for the finish, we are obviously ready to work on the organization of it”. It was from August 27 to 31, 2020, that Nice successfully hosted the Grand Départ of the Tour de France.

Motorist arrested for driving without a license later leaves police station at the wheel of his car - A motorist who was arrested for driving without a license, later left the police station at the wheel of his car. After a simple roadside check, police in Aix-en-Provence escorted the man who was driving without a license back to the station. An hour later, the man left the station with a summons to appear in court and drove off in his car. Officers took a while to realize what was happening however a few seconds later they catch up with him and the car is impounded.

Business

The head of the World Trade Organization has said that a food crisis kicked off by the Ukraine war could last for years. Ukraine is a major global exporter of wheat, contributing to 9% of the global market. It also accounts for a massive 42% chunk of the global sunflower oil market, and 16% of the world's maize. Because of gridlock due to a Russian blockade of Black Sea ports, and Russian and Ukrainian mines along the coast, between 20 and 25 million tonnes of wheat are stuck in Ukraine while global grain prices spiral upwards.

In the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson will promise to boost home ownership later today as he attempts to repair relations with Tory MPs who revolted against his leadership. In a speech in Lancashire, the PM is expected to say he wants to extend the right to buy to people who rent from housing associations. He will also promise action in the coming weeks to cut household costs. It comes after four in ten of his MPs voted against him in a confidence vote on Monday triggered by Partygate. The worse-than-expected result followed months of criticism over parties in Downing Street during lockdown that broke Covid rules.

TikTok is investigating claims of an aggressive work culture after a senior executive at the firm allegedly said he "didn't believe" in maternity leave. The Financial Times reported that that Joshua Ma has now stepped back and been replaced in his role leading the social media firm's UK ecommerce team. It follows a probe by the newspaper which alleged a staff exodus from TikTok's London offices.

Sport

Football - Ukraine recovered from missing out on World Cup qualification to claim a narrow 1-0 win in Dublin over the Republic of Ireland in last night’s Nations League.

Rugby Union - Tiffany Youngs, the wife of former England and Leicester hooker Tom, has died after losing her battle against cancer. Tiffany was diagnosed with cancer in 2014, prompting Tom to step away from England's tour of New Zealand to care for his wife. Her brother-in-law Ben Youngs similarly opted not to tour with the British and Irish Lions in 2017 to spend time with family. Leicester said they were "deeply saddened" by the news.

Tennis - Emma Raducanu is expected to be fit for Wimbledon after a scan showed the injury which forced her to retire at the Nottingham Open was a side strain. The US Open champion retired just seven games into her first grass-court match of the season in Nottingham on Tuesday.

Golf - Golfer Rory Mcllroy has said that the golfers playing in the inaugural Saudi-funded LIV Golf event this week are doing it for "boatloads of cash". Major champions Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson are reported to have been paid $200m and $150m respectively to play in the series. McIlroy is defending his Canadian Open title this week on the PGA Tour.

Weather

Sunny with clear skies and highs of 26 degrees in Beaulieu, Nice, Antibes and Cannes with a gentle breeze. Strong winds, clear skies and highs of 29 degrees in Saint Tropez and the Var. This evening going down to 17 degrees with clear skies.

Outlook for Friday and the weekend remaining fine with highs of between 27-29 degrees.

Sea temperature: 22 degrees     UV level: 9

Sunrise:             05.48hr                                 Sunset: 21.10hr

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