This French Life

Search for Brit fraudster

POLICE in France's Dordogne region are hunting for a Briton suspected of defrauding elderly expatriates — including five Britons and two Americans — of several million euros, legal officials said Tuesday.

More: British fraudster targets expats

Problems of youth unemployment

ONE of the most important targets on the French government’s agenda for 2006 is to tackle youth unemployment.

Many observers claimed the riots that hit France last year were as a result of lack of job opportunities amongst many young people.

Visa delays hitting US trips

LATE last year the US Embassy in France warned of likly delays in the issuing of visas to French citizens heading to the States.

And things still look bad according to the International Herald Tribune who spent a few hours on the cold pavement outside the embassy.

Naturally people are beginning to question the sense in heading to the US as both the time and costs mount.

Keeping the kids happy when moving

IN the rush to start afresh in France some things can be left behind.

One of these may be the thoughts and feelings of other members of the family, especially those of the children who may have had no say in the decision to move.

Get past recorded telephone messages

WE all know that companies make it difficult to actually talk to someone when we phone them up, but now there's a way to avoid it.

The Cheapflights Telephone Cheat Sheet is a guide to help you bypass the computerised answering services many airlines and travel companies use.

Instead of listening to some mind-numbing classical music you can cut through all the waiting and get straight to talking to a real human being.

Colin Randall of the Telegraph on French life

THE Daily Telegraph’s Paris-based correspondent Colin Randall features in the latest This French Life podcast.

In it he talks about his life in France, offers his thoughts about the differences between the UK and French press and how he became the newspaper’s representative in the country.

A look at France

AUTHOR Sebastian Faulks describes the attraction of the French way of life in an interesting article in The Sunday Times.

His book Birdsong told the story of a young Englishman and his harrowing experiences fighting in northern France during the First World War.

Dordogne tax office helps Brits

FINANCE minister Thierry Breton undertook the official opening of a department at the Dordogne tax office aimed at Brits living there.

The English-language service has been running for some time but the French government has clearly seen the potential of helping Brits set up businesses in the Dordogne.

Contact details for the Dordogne tax office.

Luton to Reims flight launched

AIR Turquoise, the low-cost airline based in Reims, is to begin flights to Luton Airport from March 28.

The airline will operate a daily flight from Reims Aiport, a 90 minute drive from Paris along the A8 autoroute, with one-way tickets starting at £35, including taxes and charges.

A new route between Reims and Toulouse will also be started by Air Turquoise in April.

Tourism figures see slight upturn

THE French tourist trade enjoyed a bit of a rebound in 2005 after the poor performance of the previous two years.

According to figures released by the Ministry of Tourism there was a 2% increase in the number of nights people spent in hotels.