French and Riviera News Tuesday 13th November 2018

Local

Marseille - A week after the collapse of two buildings in Marseille lawyers in the city have launched a help line for the victims. As of Wednesday 14th November those needing assistance or advice about compensation will be able to call the number or make an appointment for a free.

Strike action - Several hundred teachers, administrators and supervisors gathered on the Place Massena in Nice on Monday morning as part of a national day of action by education unions. The teachers are concerned about their job security. In Marseille, the rally was held in the Old Port and a demonstration was also held in Toulon.

Couple sentenced for murder - A couple have been sentenced to 25 years in prison for murder. The body of a German man was found in a villa in Eze in September 2011 and was initially thought to be a case of suicide, but police investigations led them to suspect that the couple, one French national and the other a German national, had been involved in the man’s death. 

Protest against petrol prices - The French government has said that protests planned for the 17th November against the rise in petrol prices won’t be allowed to cause a total blockage of traffic. The Secretary of State to the Minister of the Interior said on Monday that the demonstrations must be declared and supervised and cannot produce a total blockage. He said that police would monitor the situation. According to unions, 1,600 demonstrations are planned across France. The main protest in our region is due to take place on the A8 motorway at Saint Isidore on the 17th.  

Meanwhile due to work being carried out on sections of the A8 motorway, in both the Var and the Alpes Maritimes, the motorway will be partially closed from 9pm to 5am until Friday 16th November. For more information go to vinci-autoroutes.com

National

French woman on trial - A French woman has gone on trial accused of hiding the existence of a child she kept in the boot of her car. The girl was discovered by a garage mechanic who heard noises when the car was brought in for repairs. The mother is charged with repeated violence against a minor causing permanent disability, and faces up to 20 years in prison. She is said to have hidden the pregnancy and birth from her partner and three older children.

Commemorations 13th November - Three years after the attacks of November 13, 2015 that left 130 dead and 413 wounded, several commemorations are scheduled today in Saint-Denis and Paris. For the first time, the President of the Republic will not be present.

Diesel - Elected officials in Paris have voted in favour of a ban on the most polluting vehicles as of July 2019. The ban will apply to diesel vehicles registered before December 31st 2001 for the Greater Paris region a “low emission zone” concerning 79 municipalities out of the 131 and 5.61 million inhabitants. The city hopes that a complete ban of all diesel engines will be implemented in the region by 2024.

Tax evasion - The French Budget Minister Gérald Darmanin has announced plans to extend the use of social media in the fight against tax evasion, a tactic that was first successfully tried in the UK. Tax authorities will begin combing through public social media accounts as early as 2019 as part of stepped up efforts to crack down on fiscal fraud in France. The goal of the experimental plan will be to identify discrepancies between an individual’s declared revenue and his or her lifestyle as depicted on social media, such as Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

Europe - Meanwhile French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire has said that Europe must 'become an Empire' to rival China and the US. Speaking to German media on Monday Le Maire said the EU must project its power around the globe to promote peace and protect the environment adding 'It's about Europe having to become an Empire. But a peaceful empire that relies on green growth. Neither China nor the US, who are leaving the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, are on this line.'

Route du Rhum - 62 year old French yachtsman Francis Joyon, has won the Route du Rhum transatlantic race in record time. Joyon sailed into Point-a-Pitre just before midnight on Sunday to take victory in the single-handed race after seven days, 14 hours, 21 minutes and 47 seconds at sea. All 123 challengers, half of them in small Class 40 boats, left Saint Malo in northwest France on November 4th for Guadeloupe.

Business

All three major US stock market indexes have now erased the gains from the brief rally following the Congressional elections on the 6th of November.

Shares in Apple fell by 5 percent after several suppliers to the tech giant cut their forecasts.

Among them was Lumentum Holdings whose components power Apple’s iPhone Face ID technology.Its shares fell by 33 percent on concerns about its growth potential.

Meanwhile,shares in Goldman Sachs tumbled by 7.5 percent following a Bloomberg report that said that the Malaysian Finance Minister was seeking a full refund of all the fees that the country paid to the bank for arranging billions of dollars of deals for its troubled state fund 1MDB.

Technology and financial stocks weighed heaviest on the S&P  with its tech industry index down 3.5 percent and the financial sector index down by 2 percent.

 

Shares in two major tobacco firms have fallen following reports that US regulators are planning to ban menthol cigarettes.

British American Tobacco shares closed down 10.6 percent at their lowest level in almost 5 years.

Imperial Brands also fell sharply but recovered some losses to close the day down 2.2 percent.

The falls came following a report in the Wall Street Journal that said that US Food and Drugs Administration would impose a ban on menthol cigarettes.

Analysts estimate that menthol cigarettes account for a quarter of BAT’s earnings and around a tenth of Imperial Brands’.

 

And-The pound has fallen again following reports that a Brexit deal was near were downplayed by UK officials.

The British Prime Minister’s Downing Street office said that “substantial issues” still need to be resolved as negotiators worked through the night in an attempt to hammer out a withdrawal deal.

Analysts say that the pound’s movements over the coming week will depend on how Brexit talks develop.

 

Sport

Football-The Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge has been charged by the English Football Association with misconduct for alleged breaches of its betting rules.

The offences are reported to have taken place in January and are said to involve one count relating to betting on football.

Liverpool says that the player is co-operating fully with the enquiry and has denied gambling on football.

He has until next Tuesday to respond to the charge.

Real Madrid look set to appoint caretaker manager Santiago Solari on a permanent basis.

The coach has won all four of his games since he took charge of the Spanish giants –the best start of any manager in the club’s history.

Formula 1-The Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has defended Max Verstappen after he pushed Force India’s Esteban Ocon following a row at last weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix.

Horner said that “drivers aren’t robots and we don’t want them to be”.

Verstappen has been punished by stewards as a result of the incident and has been ordered to carry out two days of “public service”.

Rugby Union-The Ireland scrum-half Connor Murray and centre Robbie Henshaw have both been ruled out of Saturday’s autumn international against New Zealand.

Murray has a troublesome  neck injury and hasn’t played since Ireland’s tour of Australia in June while Henshaw hobbled off with a hamstring problem during the warm-up ahead of the game against Argentina in Dublin last weekend.

Tennis-Novak Djokovic has won his opening match at the end of season ATP World Tour Finals in London.

The world number one beat John Isner 6-4 6-3.

Earlier on Monday Alexander Zverev beat Marin Cilic in straight sets in the other match in the Gustavo Kuerten group.

Today,Roger Federer will need to beat Dominic Thiem in the other group or he’s likely to be eliminated from the tournament.

Weather

Hazy sunshine with light easterly or variable winds and a high of 19-20 degrees.

Overnight lows of 14 degrees with partially cloudy skies.

Wednesday and thursday-Mainly fine with highs of 18-19 degrees.

Finally 

Falling in love can make the world seem a better place — but it can also have a major impact on your health.

A wealth of new research has found that romance can help improve a range of conditions, from high blood pressure to pain and allergic reactions.

Falling in love is the result of activity in 12 areas of the brain working together researchers say the first changes in brain activity begin within one-fifth of a second of becoming smitten.

It is thought hormones released by touch are likely to play a role — pressure centres in the skin are in contact with the brain through the vagus nerve, which runs down the body.  Falling in love can also have an effect on our ability to fight off infections.

Then there are the benefits of kissing. A study found that 30 minutes of kissing reduced the production of histamine — which triggers allergy symptoms. Couples who kiss each other the most have lower levels of cholesterol.

Meanwhile, hugging your loved one can lower blood pressure and reduce heart rate

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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