This French Life

News stops: Homeless deaths in cold; North Korean intrigue

A LOOK over some of the news headlines from France.

Five homeless die as cold snap hits France
Five homeless men have died of hypothermia or in a fire they had apparently lit to warm up as a cold snap hit France in the past few days, authorities announced on Tuesday.

North Korean student on the run in France after escaping from Pyongyang's agents
North Korean student "in hiding" in Paris after attempted abduction, say diplomats, as details emerge of France's murky "student cooperation scheme" with the Communist regime to improve Pyongyang's architecture.

French high court upholds dismissal of mercy-killing doctor
The Council of State upheld Tuesday the decision by the French Order of Doctors to dismiss mercy-killing Dr Bonnemaison, forbidding him to practise medicine. He was acquitted last June of his accusation of “poisoning” seven patients.

Segolene Royal defeats 'ridiculous' Paris ban on open log fires
Parisians wishing to settle down in front of a warm log fire over the cold winter nights breathed a sigh of relief yesterday as the ban on open log fires in the Paris region, set to begin on January 1, was overturned.

Price of a stamp in France to rise 10 centimes from 1 January

FROM 1 January, 2015, the price of a stamp will rise steeply pushing the price of a lettre prioritaire, the standard red stamp, up from 66 to 76 centimes.

The green timbre vert, which provides a slower delivery period, will increase from 61 to 68 centimes.

Figures show that on average households spend around 46 euros a year on postal products, but La Poste has been hit by a dramatic slide in the use of its services.

The volume of post fell by 4.3% a year between 2008 and 2012, while last year the amount fell by 6%.

Stamps bought before the price rises are introduced can be used after the 1 January, 2015.

Official population of France stands at 65,241,241

THE official statistics body, Insee, has said that the number of people living in France and its overseas territories in 2012 was 65,241,241.

This was an increase of just over 300,000 on the previous year, while if metropolitan France is taken alone then the number is 63,375,971.

Regionally and the Paris area is the largest by a long way with a population of nearly 12 million, Rhône-Alpes comes in second with 6.3 million and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur is third with just under five million.

Insee has also made a simple online database available that allows you to type in your commune and it will then tell you the population figure.

News stops: Pearl found in market stall oyster; Health care strike strengthens

A PICK of news headlines from France.

French oyster-lover sees double in Christmas discovery
Few French people downing their festive serving of oysters would expect to find a pearl inside the shell. But one market stallholder was confronted with not one but two.

“Finding two at once is extremely rare,” said oyster farmer Malika Molen who sold the molluscs at Saint-Jory market near Toulouse a couple of Sundays ago. “He’s one of my regular customers. He always buys two dozen – one to eat while standing at his couscous stall, and the other to take home.”

French GPs’ strike action getting stronger in its second week
The French emergency association of doctors – SOS Médecins – joined Monday the week-long general practitioners’ strike, increasing the number of mobilized against the Health Ministry’s new bill.

French region to ban powerful firecrackers on New Year’s Eve
Accidents due to the use of firecrackers on New Year’s Eve, which have left three people dead in two years in the Alsace region in eastern France, have prompted the authorities to ban certain types of explosives.

Ukraine's President to meet Russian, French, German leaders, rules out offensive
Ukraine's President said on Monday he would meet the leaders of Russia, France and Germany on Jan. 15 in an attempt to restore peace to Kiev's eastern territories and acknowledged Kiev lacked the resources to regain control by military means.

French town tries to save first world war soldier’s room for posterity

A portrait of French soldier Hubert Rochereau
Until this year, few would have known the name of Dragoons officer Hubert Rochereau, or heard of the tiny village of Bélâbre in central France. But the revelation this autumn that the young soldier’s bedroom, complete with his feathered dress helmet and military jacket, had been preserved for almost 100 years after his death on a Belgian battlefield in the first world war brought unexpected recognition to both.

Now Laurent Laroche, mayor of Bélâbre, is hoping his commune’s new-found fame will also bring a benefactor to save Rochereau’s room for posterity. “When you walk into it it’s as if time has stood still,” he told the Guardian. “On a much smaller scale, I imagine it’s how the explorers felt when they opened the first pyramid or ancient tomb.

Diesel vehicles could face higher charges to use autoroutes

DRIVERS of diesel cars could face increased fees to use the autoroute system across France, the Journal du Dimanche newspaper reports.

Discussions have taken place between the government and autoroute operators to set up a system from 2016 that sees vehicles having to pay more if they are deemed to produce more air pollution.

And whilst it was once thought diesel engines were seen as cleaner, recent studies say they are carcinogenic to humans, and that exposure is associated with an increased risk for lung cancer.

The French government has also been keen to close the gap between petrol and diesel prices at the pump with an estimated €6 billion gap between the two.

Any changes are sure to have an impact on the French public, as around 80% of new cars registered in the country run on diesel.

Heavy snow brings thousands of drivers to a halt

Snow and ice in the French Alps have stranded 15,000 vehicles, snarling up holiday traffic to and from ski resorts, French media report.

The country declared an orange weather alert, its second-highest, as local authorities scrambled to put up motorists for the night.

One man died when his vehicle slid into a ravine in the Isere region.

News stops: Avalanche deaths; Reselling Christmas gifts; Anti-homeless cages around benches

CATCH up with some of the news headlines from France.

Two brothers killed in an avalanche in the French Alps
The body of a mountain-climber that had gone missing after an avalanche in the Mont-Blanc massif in eastern France was recovered Friday, a day after the body of his brother was also found, according to the rescue team.

More and more French resell their Christmas gifts
Shamelessly, the French no longer hesitate to resell on the internet disappointing gifts or those they received twice as early as Christmas day.

French city installs anti-homeless cages around benches
French mayor accused of a shameful lack of Christmas spirit after placing metal cages over public benches to banish homeless from city centre.

Courchevel fears fallout from Russian economic woes
And the cold winds from Moscow are being felt 2,000 miles away, in the French resort that Roman Abramovich once requested shut for his own private skiing session – his request was declined – and where Mr Putin has helicoptered in for lunch.

French Christmas market attacker was drunk, police say
A driver who rammed his car into Christmas shoppers in an attack that raised fears of terrorism was four times over the legal drink driving limit, police in the western French city of Nantes said.

SNCF announce increase in ticket prices

RAIL passengers face a hike in ticket prices of up to 2.6% from December 31, 2014, SNCF announced in a press release.

SNCF says the increase is required to cover future investment and will see price rises for TER and Intercité services, as well as standard tickets on TGVs.

Critics have said that if price increases were to produce a better service then there would be some acceptance of the move,

EasyJet in France faces another round of strike action by staff

Update 30/12/2014: easyJet has said that around 70 flights will be cancelled on 31 December and New Years Day, with Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris worst hit, but also Orly seeing cancellations, and flights also grounded at Lyon, Nice, Toulouse and Lille.

Unions representing French cabin crews have called a new strike for December 31 and January 1.

It follows an initial stoppage on Christmas Day (December 25) and Boxing Day (December 26), which led to nearly 40 cancellations at the British airline's French operations on Friday.

Cabin crew unions are demanding a larger share of Easyjet’s profits for employees as well as improvements to working schedules and staff benefits.

Website: easyJet France