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French lawmakers finalise new ‘driving homicide’ offence after campaign by grieving families
New offence will not increase penalties for under-the-influence drivers but bring relief to victims
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Stena Line to end popular France-Ireland ferry crossing
Rival operators will continue to serve Cherbourg port as passenger numbers on route increase
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Red heatwave alerts continue as storms sweep across France
South-west and Brittany are the only areas likely to avoid storms this evening after several temperature records were broken in the south yesterday
Coronavirus: road death toll halved during lockdown
While the number of high-speed offences and accidents increased.

Road deaths more than halved in April, with the lockdown cutting most non-essential traffic. The figure of 103 killed was 133 down on April 2019 – a 56% fall – and follows a 40% cut in March, when lockdown started.
Read more: how to get a Covid-19 car insurance refund in France
However, the national road safety body Sécurité Routière said the death toll figures gave a false image as numbers had fallen by less than the drop in road traffic. There was also the return of once-rare accidents where lone drivers had unexplained high-speed crashes, plus many flashed at more than 250kph.
Empty roads saw high-speed offences and accidents soaring. Research by Europe 1 showed speed traps caught 11,200 drivers going at least 50kph over the limit – up from 9,600 in 2019 – while radar alert firm Coyote showed 77% fewer vehicles on the roads.
Read more: France plans gradual sporting return
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