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Registrations for Pope Leo XIV’s France visit open on August 10
Visit will include private meeting with victims of Church sexual abuse
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New sanctions for unauthorised dog and cat sales in France
Pet shops face fines of up to €1,500 per animal if breaching rules
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Storms to hit France: exceptionally long period of heat to continue
Winds of up to 100km/h expected in localised areas in the south and south-west
Assisted conception available to all women from 2018
Secretary of state for equality tells BFMTV decision is 'a matter of social justice'
Medically assisted conception will be made available to all women from 2018, secretary of state for equality Marlène Schiappa has announced.
Known in France as procréation médicalement assistée (PMA), medically assisted conception, including IVF treatment, is currently only available to heterosexual couples in a long-term relationship who suffer from a medically recognised infertility condition, or who are at risk of transmitting a serious illness to the child in the womb.
Opening PMA to all women was a campaign promise of Emmanuel Macron during the Presidential campaign, Ms Shiappa told BFMTV. It is, she said, "a matter of social justice".
In June, France's medical ethics watchdog, the Comité consultatif national d'éthique, voted in favour of extending it to single women and women in a same-sex relationship.
