News
34-year-old man drowns - A 34-year-old man from Roquebrune has drowned at the Larvotto beach in Monaco. The tragic incident occurred shortly before 11pm on Tuesday evening. According to reports the victim was under the influence of alcohol at the time. An hour earlier, a friend who was with him during the evening had dialled “17” when he had no news of him. Minutes later emergency services found the body of the missing man only a few meters from the shore. The fatal drowning occurred outside of swimming surveillance hours. An autopsy has been carried out, but the conclusions are not yet known. The investigation continues.
1,000 hectares destroyed by fire near Montpellier - 1,000 hectares of woodland and scrubland have been destroyed by a fire about twenty kilometres from Montpellier (Hérault). On Tuesday authorities asked around 300 people to evacuate the nearby village and five firefighters were slightly injured. An inquiry has favoured a criminal track
Fire at town hall of Saint-Tropez - A fire has broken out in the town hall of Saint-Tropez. The incident occurred at around 5.30pm on Tuesday and employees were evacuated. Nobody was injured but the town hall will be closed this Wednesday morning. An investigation has been opened to determine the cause.
July 2022 driest since 1958 - July 2022 will "very likely" be the driest July since 1958. According to Météo France on average in France eight millimetres of rain fell from July 1st to 25th, a huge deficit. So far, the driest July ever recorded since the start of Météo-France measurements is that of 2020, with 16 millimetres of cumulative rain.
Improvement covid figures in Monaco - The Monaco government has issued its weekly update on Covid-19 numbers. There has been an improvement in the indicators with the incidence rate falling to 460 per 100,000 people compared with 733 in the previous week. In the week from 18 to 24 July, 180 new positive cases of Covid-19 were recorded. As of Monday evening, 29 people, including 22 residents, were hospitalized at the Princess Grace Hospital. No patient was being treated in intensive care. 85 people were being monitored by the Home Monitoring Centre.
More than 1,000 verbal or physical attacks on doctors - More than 1,000 verbal or physical attacks on doctors have been recorded in France in 2021. These attacks, 70% verbal, mainly affect general practitioners. At a time when the health system is suffering from recruitment difficulties, the Doctors' Safety Observatory recalls that they are exposed to verbal or physical attacks. In 2021, 1,009 incidents were reported by health professionals. The number of declared attacks remains close to those of previous years, after a slight drop in 2020, a year marked by several lockdowns. In 2019, this same observatory recorded 1,084 attacks.
Monkey pox vaccination centre opens in Paris - A monkey pox vaccination centre has opened in Paris. Ile-de-France is the region with the most cases of Monkeypox contamination: around 1,000 cases, compared to 1,745 throughout France. On July 8th, the High Authority for Health recommended “that preventive vaccination be offered to the groups most exposed to the virus”. This concerns, according to the HAS, health professionals in contact with patients, men having “sex with men”, or even “people in a situation of prostitution”. Monkeypox is transmitted, according to Public Health France, by contact with the skin or mucous membranes.
France’s employment Minister announces plans to toughen up the compensation rules once the economy has recovered - France’s employment Minister has announced that he wants to "toughen up" the compensation rules for unemployment in France once the economy is doing well. Following the publication of the figures of Pôle Emploi France’s unemployment centre, the Minister says that the rules of unemployment compensation "must take into account the situation of the employment market" adding that when things are going well, we tighten the rules and, when things are bad, we relax them" taking up a campaign commitment from Emmanuel Macron.
Compulsory MOT for two-wheelers has been abolished - The compulsory MOT for two-wheelers will not be introduced as planned. The decree aiming to make it an obligation for two-wheelers from 2023 has been abolished.
The decree on the technical control of two-wheelers has been the subject of controversy since its publication in August 2021. It introduced the measure in stages and from the beginning of 2023, while the European Union had decided in 2014 to impose it to Member States by 1st January 2022 at the latest. However according to French President Emmanuel Macron “now is not the time to bother the French”. The announcement has left environmental associations up in arms. Three NGOs - Respire, Ras le Scoot and Paris without cars have called for its implementation as soon as possible, emphasizing that such a measure would reduce the mortality of motorcyclists, as well as noise and air pollution.
Tour de France - It has been strongly suggested that the 2024 Tour de France will end in Nice and not as usual, on the famous Champs-Elysées in Paris. Announced on Tuesday by France’s sports minister the rumor had been circulating since early June. Nice had already hosted the Grand Départ in 2020.
House of happiness - The village of Roquestron in the Alpes Maritimes is to open a “house of happiness”. Located in a former hotel-restaurant in the heart of the village elected officials have plans which will see the building be turned into a “Maison du bonheur”. The concept will bring together able-bodied, retired, active, isolated, and disabled people to allow them to experience a family life.
Business
EU members have agreed to voluntarily reduce 15% of gas use between August and March. The European Union has said its aim from the deal is to make savings and store gas ahead of winter, warning that Russia is "continuously using energy supplies as a weapon".
The International Monetary Fund has warned that the UK is set for the slowest growth of the G7 richest economies next year, predicting UK growth will fall to just 0.5% in 2023, much lower than its forecast in April of 1.2%. The global economy has shrunk for the first time since 2020, the IMF said, hit by the Ukraine war and Covid-19. The IMF said that with growth stalling in the UK, US, China and Europe, the world "may soon be teetering on the edge of a global recession”.
The London-based satellite company OneWeb, which was rescued from bankruptcy in part by the British government, is to merge with Paris-headquartered Eutelsat. The French company already had a 23% share in the UK business. The operators say the joint mission will give both partners a better chance to realise the business opportunities that are coming.
Sport
Football - England's Lionesses are celebrating after they thrashed Sweden 4-0 to book their place in the women's Euro 2022 final at Wembley. England will now face either Germany or France who play on Wednesday in Milton Keynes.
It is the first time since 2009 that England Women are through to a major final, but they have never won a World Cup or Euros trophy in their history.
Rugby Union - Sport governing bodies have been called on to acknowledge that repetitive head impacts cause a degenerative brain disease after new research found a causal link between the two.
Boxing – Floyd Mayweather is reportedly close to agreeing a deal with Conor McGregor to stage a sensational rematch. It has been nearly five years since Mayweather taught the UFC superstar a boxing lesson, securing a tenth round TKO victory in Las Vegas back in August 2017. According to reports Mayweather is willing to once again put his unbeaten record on the line in a money-spinning match against McGregor.
Weather
Sunshine and some cloud, with the risk of showers and even a thunderstorm inland. Highs of 29 degrees in Monaco and Nice. Reaching up to 33 degrees in Marseille and Saint Tropez. Gentle breeze. This evening going down to 24 degrees along the coast this evening and 19 degrees inland, with clear skies.
The outlook for Thursday and Friday sunshine and cloudy patches with again the risk of showers inland and highs of 33 degrees.
Sea Temperature 27 degrees UV level 9
Sunrise 06.13hr Sunset 20.59hr
And Finally
A new study has suggested that dogs might be using their highly-sensitive noses to 'see' as well as to smell. A team of vets discovered that vision and smell are actually connected in the brains of dogs - something not yet found in any other species. The findings, suggest smell and vision in dogs are therefore integrated in some way - implying they may use scent to work out where things are.
A man from Nice used a stolen bank card to make purchases in Monaco, spending over €1,700 in various shops, mostly on airpods that he planned to resel...
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Electric bike-sharing firm Pony says all of its vehicles will be back out on the streets of Nice no later than June, after they were withdrawn last mo...
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Gabriel Attal announced new measures In response to recent acts of violence among young people during a visit to Viry-Châtillon. Attal highlighted the...
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The owners of a vast floating artificial island that had been planned for last summer off the coast of Mandelieu have won a legal battle to be allowed...
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The Monegasque State has successfully conducted its first national voluntary surrender operation, with 123 firearms being handed over by private indiv...
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