Defiant mayors vow to keep burkini bans

LOCAL authorities in several Riviera resorts have said they will maintain their bans on burkinis on their beaches, despite a decision by the country's highest administrative court to suspend a bylaw in one seaside town.

The Conseil d'Etat ruled on Friday that the temporary local ban on the swimwear in Villeneuve-Loubet, a popular resort between Nice and Cannes, 'seriously infringed, in a manner that was clearly illegal, fundamental liberties such as the freedom to come and go, religious freedom and individual freedom'.

The court's decision set a precedent that is expected to lead to bans being lifted in an estimated 30 other towns - mostly along the Riviera. The lawyer who brought Friday's case has said he will take each town to court.

But officials in Nice and Fréjus are among those to say that they will continue to impose their own bylaws. David Rachline, the Front National mayor of Fréjus, told AFP that there was 'no legal procedure' that could block his ruling; and authorities in Nice said they would continue to impose €38 fines on anyone who flouts the rule.

The mayor of Sisco, in Corsica, Ange-Pierre Vivoni, has also said the ban he imposed after violence between tourists and locals, would remain in place. He said it was 'for the safety of property and people in the town because I risked having deaths on my hands'.

The court ruled that local authorities could only restrict individual freedoms if those freedoms represented a 'proven risk' to public order. It said the bylaw banning burkinis in Villeneuve-Loubet failed this test, and was therefore unlawful.

Its ruling added: "The concern and worries resulting from recent terrorist attacks, in particular the attack that took place in Nice on July 14, are not sufficient to justify legally the mayor’s order."

Prime Minister Manuel Valls has previously given the bans his conditional support. In a post on his Facebook page, he said that the court's decision did 'not end the debate that has been opened' on a matter that follows on from other issues dating back 30 years.

The court will make a final decision on the legality of the ban at a later date.