What’s coming up? The week ahead in France

We look at the events which are expected or scheduled to take place in France this week.

Minister to hold meeting with UEFA and authorities on Champions League final policing

France’s Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra has called a meeting this morning (May 30) at 11:00 to discuss the issues which surrounded the organisation and policing of the Liverpool fans trying to enter the Stade de France for the Champions League final on Saturday (May 28).

She will go over the evening’s events with representatives from UEFA, the Fédération française du football, the Paris police and local authorities to “draw lessons” from the chaos.

French police have been criticised for firing pepper spray and tear gas at Liverpool fans who found themselves in long queues to get into the stadium.

These queues caused kick-off to be delayed by 36 minutes. Screens inside the stadium blamed this on the “late arrival” of fans.

Ms Oudéa-Castéra stated on RTL radio this morning that there were “30,000-40,000 people” trying to get into the stadium without tickets or with fake tickets, and Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has also tweeted that some fans without tickets had been “violent” to stadium workers.

However, British police officers who were also present at the final have contested this version of events, stating that the “vast majority” of Liverpool fans “behaved in an exemplary manner”.

Paris’ police prefect has said that he will launch a legal investigation into the “massive fake ticket fraud” which appears to have taken place.

Some income tax declaration deadlines arrive tomorrow

Residents of departments 20 (Corsica) to 54 (Meurthe-et-Moselle) have until tomorrow (May 31) at 23:59 to complete their income declarations for this year.

This also applies to all those who are filling in paper declarations, no matter the department.

For people in departments 55 (Meuse) to 976 (Mayotte), the deadline is June 8 at 23:59.

Official opening of this year’s legislative election campaign

Today (May 30) marks the official launch of the campaign for June’s legislative elections.

Parties can now display posters and broadcast campaign messages to the public on television and radio stations. These channels must make sure that all candidates are given the chance to present their proposals in a fair manner.

The elections will take place on June 12 and June 19, with French people living abroad and residents of overseas departments being able to vote slightly earlier to make sure that their ballots are counted in time.

Roland-Garros final set for this weekend

This year’s Roland-Garros tournament will come to a head this weekend, with the women’s singles final on Saturday (June 4) at around 15:00 and the men’s on Sunday (June 5) at 15:00.

Rafael Nadal has beaten Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime to reach a quarter final against world number one Novak Djokovic.

Nadal has raised suspicions that he is preparing for the end of his career, saying during a press conference: “I am in the quarter finals of Roland-Garros. I am just enjoying the fact I am here for one more year.

“Being honest, every match that I play here I do not know if it will be the last match here in Roland-Garros in my tennis career. That is my situation now.

“I went through a tough process again with my foot. I do not know what will happen in the near future with my career, so I am just trying to enjoy and fight as much as I can to keep living the dream.

“I hope to give myself a chance to play at the highest level possible and then let’s see.”

Rafael Nadal has a "chronic foot injury which has no treatment."

Rendez-vous aux jardins open days take place around France

This weekend (June 3-5) will see France’s annual Rendez-vous aux jardins take place, with 2,200 open garden events across the country.

Members of the public will be welcomed to free tours and talks in some of France’s best – and least – known gardens, from the Tuileries to a convent garden in Isère.

This year’s theme is ‘Les jardins face au changement climatique’ (Gardens confronted by climate change).

To find out more about the gardens which will be opening to the public, you can use this interactive map.

This weekend will also see dozens of private gardens open across Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Grand Est as part of a fundraising event for Jardins et Santé, an organisation which creates therapeutic gardens for hospital patients and staff.

President Macron in Brussels for EU summit

After a start to his second term in office which opposition figures have described as being characterised by “inertia”, President Emmanuel Macron is heading for Brussels today (May 30) for an EU summit.

President Macron spent last week at the presidential Fort of Brégançon residence in the Var but will now spend the next two days in Brussels before carrying out visits across France.

Marine Le Pen (Rassemblement National) has criticised “the feeling of a holiday from power,” adding “It’s all going extremely slowly, even though for many French people, the situation is critical and urgent”.

Related articles

Six changes for residents in France in June 2022

France plans to bring in new measures to help people’s spending power