News
Woman found dead in her home in Mandelieu - Police in Cannes have opened an investigation after a woman was found dead in her bed at her home in Mandelieu. It was the woman's sister who made the discovery on Sunday afternoon. The victim's partner has since been arrested and placed in police custody, as police continue the investigatation to determine the exact circumstances and cause of death.
Vaccination pass - Today Tuesday 15th February, will see a change to the vaccination pass in France, with those who have not received a booster jab running the risk of losing their right to the pass. To coincide with the change authorities have invited those in possession of a false pass or having used somebody else's, to get vaccinated today to regularise their situation without the risk of being fined. On December 30th the Interior Minister reported at least 192,000 false passes in circulation in France.
Easing of health protocol in the office – Meanwhile, the French government is expected to further ease covid restrictions in the workplace with companies being able to once again, hold office gatherings in "compliance with strict barrier gestures". The move comes as teleworking is still "recommended" although it is left to the "discretion of the company's management".
Coastal path closed due to bad weather - The coastal path in Cap d'Antibes has been temporarily closed due to the strong winds. The closure was put in place on Monday February 15th, as heavy rain and strong winds hit the region. It is expected to reopen, as the fine weather returns today.
Mobility 2028 - Plans for the "Mobility 2028" project have been revealed which will include the construction of an additional cycling path linking Nice to Monaco. The path connecting the city of Nice to the Principality should be completed by 2023. The project will see an additional 160km of cycling paths created, including 75km in Nice by 2026.
Inquiry into death of 27 migrants in the English Chanel last November - An inquiry into the sinking of a canoe in the English Channel in November of last year has shown that the French emergency services had been alerted. On November 24th 27 migrants died in the English Channel while trying to reach the UK. Until now, the maritime prefecture of the Channel claimed to have known of the sinking only on November 24 at 2 p.m., when a fishing boat spotted the lifeless bodies of the migrants. But a French source told Radio France's Investigation Unit that some of the migrants had dialled 196, the CROSS number, that night to ask for help. The inquiry continues.
Greenpeace asks for withdrawal of palm oil import - Greenpeace has asked the prefecture of the Bouches du Rhone to immediately withdraw the palm oil import permit granted to its refinery, located near Marseille. Greenpeace accuses the French group TotalEnergies of concealing "the real effects on the climate" of its production of palm oil fuel imported from Asia in its refinery in La Mède in the Bouches-du-Rhône. The environmental NGO has asked the prefecture of Bouches-du-Rhône to immediately withdraw the fuel import authorization. The energy company, which has pledged to stop using palm oil from 2023, has always defended itself against accusations from NGOs by saying that the oils purchased for La Mède meet "the sustainability criteria set by the European Union".
Bobsleighing - Monaco's bobsleighing team put on a fine performance at the Beijing Olympics on Monday, as Rudy Rinaldi and Boris Vain took to the track. Setting a tough score to begin with they were however overtaken coming 9th with everything being decided in today's last two rounds at 1.15pm and 2.50pm.
Business
European petrol and diesel prices have hit record highs putting a further squeeze on household budgets as tensions rise over the situation in Ukraine. Although oil prices have pulled back from 7 year highs this morning on profit taking, motorists are being hit hard in the pocket by the soaring price of crude which is rising for a number of factors including Ukraine and a shortfall in supply from Opec+ nations. JP Morgan has forecast that Brent could rise as high as 125 dollars a barrel in the coming weeks if Russia invades Ukraine and Opec doesn't increase production. If the Ukraine situation deteriorates then oil and gas supplies from Russia to Europe may be interrupted which would push wholesale prices up further. Opec and its allies have struggled to increase production in line with output targets due to a combination of outages and technical issues.
The Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has invoked the country's Emergencies Act to crack down on anti-vaccine mandate protests. In an unprecedented step, Mr Trudeau said that the scope of the measures would be "time limited" and would not see the m
