I saw a reference to this website (https://france-insider.com/) and I was tempted. It l;ooks like it has useful information, and I’ve read it compared favourably to Connexion.
I think I recall someone on here recommending it. Is it still worthwhile and recommended?
I subscribe to it and find it is poles apart from the Connexion!!
What’s it like @JaneJones ?
In my view, almost anything would …
EDIT: Hadn’t really looked at it before because it seems like one of those many magazines looking at buying/selling property in France. Presumably it isn’t?
This is the newsletter I got today - you get two or three a week. I don’t copy them normally as it’s their copyright. But hopefully they’ll forgive me as I’m essentially publicising them!
A government-commissioned report says more radical action is needed to deal with the drought crisis.
The report, prepared by an inter-governmental committee, was established to undertake a review of the management of the drought last summer.
They point out the “vulnerabilities in our drinking water production and distribution system in the face of climate change.”
The report notes that last summer some large cities “were not far” from supply disruption and 550 small municipalities were unable to provide tap water.
The consequences of the drought were severe: fish mortality in 1,200 rivers that went dry, biodiversity destroyed to a “potentially irreversible” extent, and a significant decline in agricultural yields.
With the possibility that the drought in 2023 could be even worse than that of 2022, the authors make several recommendations “to improve the anticipation and multi-year management of these drought episodes, to know in real time the impacts and reduce them, and to clarify the issues of sharing and prevent conflicts of water use”.
They insist on the need for urgent action for a “radical change in our water management methods” and the taking of “structural measures”.
They state that “Only policies for transforming our uses of water over time will make it possible to avoid sudden ruptures".
They stress the shortcomings of the restrictive measures currently in place: in particular, the impossibility of measuring their effectiveness.
The authors consider that compliance with restrictive measures is poorly monitored, and non-compliance rarely sanctioned. Hence the proposal ”to develop a penal policy and appropriate administrative and judicial police measures“.
They also insist on the need for an ambitious policy of “sobriety”, with a target of reducing consumption by 10% next year and by 25% over 10 years. They call for an acceleration of the policy of reuse of treated wastewater, with the publication of “a positive list of authorised uses".
Although the report makes no firm recommendation, it considers that there would be benefits in transferring responsibility for the management of water supplies from the local to department councils.
Last month President Macron announced a plan for water, but few of the measures advocated in the report are included in the plan, and those which are included are diluted.
In particular, there is nothing about tightening controls in the event of restrictions, and little concrete about what is a key point in the report, namely the need to help agriculture reduce water use. Agriculture accounts for 58% of water consumption.
The “sobriety” objectives set by the government (-10% by 2030) are far below what the report recommends.
Similarly, there is little trace in the plan of increasing human resources in state agencies, where there have been severe budget and job cuts since 2017.
Last month the Bureau of Geological and Mining Research published its latest map on groundwater levels.
It stated that although the situation is more or less normal in Brittany, in the south-west and the Rhône Valley, the levels are “moderately low, low or very low” in the rest of the country.
One of the worst affected departments is the Pyrénées-Orientales, which has not had a day of rain for more than a year. Other departments severely affected area the Bouches-du-Rhône, Var, and Ain.
The conclude by stating that except for “exceptional rainfall events”, groundwater emptying will continue in the coming months, and “many sectors are at proven risk of drought during the summer period”.
And this is the list of recent articles
The Paris notaires have published their review of the market for last year and the outlook for 2023.
The notaires in the Alpine department of Isère have published their review of the housing market in 2022.
Taxation of Holiday Rental Income
A government committee has recommended ending the special fiscal advantages granted to landlords of holiday lettings.
Planning Rules on Agricultural Dwellings
A recent case in the French courts illustrates the planning rules for a house connected to an agricultural activity.
French Income Tax Payable in 2023
What can you expect to pay in French income tax this year?
Ten Tips for a Long-Term Visa Application
Applying for a visa for France can be daunting, so here are a few tips to assist you.
What are the income tax rules that apply on the sale of second-hand goods in France?
Speed Limit Offences and Penalties
The loss of a point on the driving licence for a minor speeding offence is to be relaxed.
In the sale of property, the presence of seaweed can constitute a hidden defect, a French court has ruled.
The Cost of Vehicle Registration
What is the cost of a vehicle registration certificate (carte grise) in France?
Residence French Permit Process ‘Deficient’
The French Ombudsman has once again launched a stinging attack on the application process for residence permits.
It’s an offshoot from the property website French-Propery.com. Which, despite being primarily a sales channel, has been full of excellent and authoritative information on living in France for a long, long time. I’ve been getting their free newsletters since the mid naughties. Some time ago they introduced an enhanced pay version for a very modest €20 PA, which I was delighted to pay. It’s well worth it. I also subscribe to Connexion, which is a bit of a hoot, but France Insider tends to deal in facts, Connexion in rumours 
I searched my emails and found one of their newsletters from 2010, this is what was on our minds then 
FrenchProperty Newsletter.pdf (111.4 KB)
That explains the property focus then @John_Scully - useful to know.
I actually find Connexion to be profoundly depressing so don’t go near it these days - the stories may be of genuine events but the slant on them is slightly reminiscent of the old “News of the World” take on things.
I know a number of people on here thinkof the Local as much like Connexion in terms of accuracy but I actually prefer it - at least it’s reasonably up-beat.
May well give this one a go though, although I already have a subscription to Le Monde and probably ought to be reading more of that!
Great - I’ll give it a go.
I enjoy the Local (another paid subscription).
Me too! I think the varied ages and particular expertise of the correspondants make it valuable reading.
I’m a bit puzzled by this, I have had many minor speeding offences and I not only didn’t know there was a sliding scale but alway lost one point even for 6 kms/hr over the limit which is where they start charging after the allowance for error. So that link appears to show still a point lost for the most minor, or have I read it wrongly?
Agree about Le Monde, the daily online edition in English can’t be bettered at abour €3 pcm (unless your politics are of the DT persuasion) which arrives with a link into one’s inbox by 07.00 every morning. And there is the option to read the articles in French, good for the old grey cells!
If you look at the current first page of their website there’s an article on train travel from France to Spain with the photo below of Cerbère ,which was a thriving French rail junction on the Spanish border in the thirties.
The building I’ve circled is a wonderful art deco hotel built in the shape of a ship between 1928 and 1932. We stayed in Cerbère on the way back from a trip to Valencia in 2019 and stumbled across it. Sadly, it was closed for renovation. We’ll go back and stay there one day.
Here’s a photo of the nearby France/Spanish border post. Bit different to Dover/Calais
My understanding is that although one will still be fined for minor infractions, they’ll no longer cost you a point on your licence. French speed limits are lunatic because many departmental roads have higher speed limits than national roads in the same dept. So I can legally and safely do 90kph on many local back roads, but as soon as I cross into the Lot far better, good straight national roads have an 80kph limit.
We had lunch in Cerbère a couple of weeks ago. When planning the trip, I’d originally intended staying at the Belvedere, which I’d remembered from this 2019 Graunaid article. 10 of the best railway hotels in Europe: readers’ travel tips | Rail travel | The Guardian
However, we were travelling with my SiL and needed a two bedroom apartment in the Belvedere, which worked out a bit pricey as it’s quite basic and spartan in some respects… Instead we stayed a little further down the coast in Spain at another old-fashioned hotel, Home | Hotel Gri-Mar It was great value, dog friendly and an incredibly relaxing environment
what is DT persuasion?
I think it is “Daily Telegraph” - a rather right wing UK newspaper.
Edit: People also use DM as an abbreviation for Daily Mail - a more rabid tabloid version 
Anyway, I’ve subscribed. Cheers all.
Now you’ve subscribed, what do you think of it? (I’m still dithering…)
A bit early to tell - but this is the front page
There seems to be a reasonable mix of info. I haven’t had an email yet.
How did you get Le Monde for €3pcm? I went to join but it is now €7.99 pcm on special offer to get the English version. so have decided to go with French-insider. Thank you for the recommend Mr Porridge.
15,99 € 7,99 €/mois
Looks like you were considering the paper + digital version. If you have the digital version only (which is what I have ) then it’s half price for the first year at the moment, which works out at €5.49 pm
Edit: I think the France Insider is digital only 
Also, just realised you wanted an English version - the one I have is daily and in French, which is what I think @strudball has
