France news

France news

France intends to follow Australia and ban social media platforms for children from the start of the 2026 academic year. A draft bill preventing under-15s from using social media will be submitted for legal checks and is expected to be debated in parliament early in the new year. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has made it clear in recent weeks that he wants France to swiftly follow Australia's world-first ban on social media platforms for under-16s, which came into force in December.

The Toulouse Administrative Court of Appeal has authorised construction of the controversial A69 motorway between Toulouse and Castres - the latest in a long-running legal saga over a road that has become a flashpoint for environmental protesters. Following the recommendations of the public rapporteur, the appeal judges ruled on Tuesday that "the motorway link project must be considered as responding to an imperative reason of major public interest".

In 2018, the European Commission launched a public consultation asking people what they thought of scrapping the time changes. It was the most successful EU consultation ever: 4.6 million people participated, in some cases representing a signification portion of the national population (3.79 per cent for Germany and 2.94 per cent for Austria). People overwhelmingly said they wanted to stop moving the clock back and forward every six months - in fact 84 per cent of respondents agreed with the proposal.

The suspect in the stabbing of three women in the Paris metro has been released from custody and moved to a psychiatric hospital, prosecutors said Saturday. The man was arrested suspected of stabbing three women in the Paris metro on Friday as the capital's end-of-year festivities were in full swing. The three victims were attacked at three different locations along the Line 3 metro track that runs across central Paris. They were injured, but not critically.

The Treasury will insure the 70-metre embroidered cloth, which depicts the 1066 Norman invasion and Battle of Hastings, for damage or loss during its transfer from France and while it is on display at the British Museum from September. It will back the cover under the Government Indemnity Scheme, an alternative to commercial insurance that allows art and cultural objects to be shown in the UK.

The quiet village of Tremolat nestled in the Dordogne valley is best known for its cingle, where the sinuous river forms an Instagrammable loop. Home to about 700 people, along with restaurants, a cafe, boulangerie and wine bar, it is a picture-perfect French idyll and a popular place for a getaway or even retirement. Karen Carter, a 65-year-old British-South African national, knew the appeal of Tremolat well: she ran two gites in the village, a beautifully renovated 250-year-old farmhouse and neighbouring 18th-century stone barn collectively called Les Chouettes.

The moment someone notices a foreign accent, they'll immediately switch to English-and be polite about it. Especially in large cities like Nice, Paris, and Marseille, those working in hospitality are conversational in English and happy to practice. If you do speak some French, they'll find your accent américain charming. But don't be offended if they continue the conversation en anglais.

He stepped down from the role in September 2024, reportedly after disagreements with Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, and since then has been officially retired. While in post however, he made the most of the role and came to global attention in 2023 after the launch of the first investigations under a new EU law into X (formerly Twitter), Facebook owner Meta and TikTok over the spread of false information and hate speech following the Hamas-Israel conflict.

France has two government-ordained sales periods, one in summer, one in winter; the rest of the time discounts and special offers shops can offer consumers are strictly limited. While you might be able to get a deal at other times, the best bargains are reserved for the period of les soldes, when retailers are allowed to sell items at below cost price.

Postal services in France are severely disrupted in the final days before Christmas after a cyber-attack upon La Poste. The French post operator La Poste was the victim of a cyber-attack on Saturday, leading to severe disruption in mail services in the final days before Christmas. A director of La Poste told French media that customer details were not affected, but the attack was having a serious effect on deliveries. The group said that deliveries of packages and letters were "disrupted but continuing" on Tuesday. Parcels can still be collected from post offices, but other services such as online tracking of deliveries are not available.

La Poste, France's postal service, is largely offline, possibly due to an unexplained incident. At the time of writing, the organization's website offers only a brief message that opens "Notre site est indisponible" - our site is unavailable - and adds that its teams are doing all they can to resolve the situation quickly. On its Facebook page, La Poste published a notice that states "A major network incident is currently disrupting all of our information systems."

An explosion at a chemical factory in Lyon, in eastern France, has led to the closure of road and rail links, while local residents have been advised to stay indoors. The blast happened at a factory in the Saint-Fons area, south of Lyon, on Monday afternoon. The factory was classed as a Seveso site - a European classification meaning a site with a potential risk to health.

Charles Dubouloz is only 36 years old, but the Frenchman is an icon of world mountaineering, a specialist in major solo winter challenges, a young man who grew up devouring mountaineering literature, and who knows all too well that premature death awaits the best climbers. Last Sunday, December 14, he reached the summit of Mont Blanc 18 pounds lighter after spending six days and five nights on the Grand Pilier d'Angle, the first feat of a trilogy that will be his farewell, his tribute.

France's presidential silverware keeper and two other men are set to stand trial over the alleged theft of porcelain and other tableware worth thousands of euros, the Paris prosecution office has said. Prosecutors said the silverware keeper Thomas M and his partner Damien G were arrested on suspicion of theft on Tuesday. Another man, Ghislain M, was arrested on suspicion of receiving stolen goods. Their full names were not given due to French privacy customs.

Investigators arrested the man and two alleged accomplices last week. They are accused of taking the objects from the official Paris residence of the French president and trying to sell them on online auction websites such as Vinted. The head steward at the palace alerted authorities to the missing objects, some of which are deemed items of national heritage. The items are estimated to have a combined value of up to 40,000 (35,000).

In line with the last two military programming laws, and after a thorough and comprehensive review, I have decided to equip France with a new aircraft carrier,

In times of aggression, we must be strong to be feared. I have decided to equip France with a new aircraft carrier,

Putin is ready to talk with France's Emmanuel Macron over the war in Ukraine, the Russian president's spokesman said in an interview published Sunday. Putin has "expressed readiness to engage in dialogue with Macron", Dmitry Peskov told state news agency RIA Novosti. "Therefore, if there is mutual political will, then this can only be assessed positively."

Ferry passengers at the Port of Dover faced delays of up to an hour on Saturday due to IT issues affecting French border controls. The disruption began on Saturday morning, coinciding with the peak Christmas getaway period, which is expected to be the busiest on record. The Port of Dover is working with partner agencies to resolve the problems and has advised passengers not to arrive more than two hours before their sailing.

Most Europe-centric alternative proposals approach the issue from a traditional hard security perspective, not fully severing Nato ties but prioritising EU-led decision-making, often starting as a Nato-plus complement before evolving into a standalone entity. Such thinking also generally proposes major increases in military spending, an EU-based command structure independent of the US, integrated European military capabilities, a shared European nuclear deterrent, and binding mutual defence commitments.

With its cuisine, culture, climates, cityscapes, and coastlines, France remains the world's most visited country, attracting over 100 million international visitors in 2024, and the World Travel and Tourism Council expected 2025 to be even bigger, surpassing all records. Its capital, Paris, ranks as the world's top city among 100 destinations in Euromonitor International's 2025 index. And France remains a top choice for Americans seeking a fresh start abroad: