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French luxury shops face curfew

Luxury shops in Paris will soon have to switch off their lights at night to save electricity. The French government is introducing new measures to cut energy consumption. 

Published: 29 March 2012 11:00 CEST
French luxury shops face curfew

The City of Lights won’t quite look the same. In July, shops and offices will have to switch off their lights at 1am to save electricity, French daily Le Parisien reports. 

The government hopes to save 170 million euros per year by introducing a new set of eco-friendly measures to cut energy consumption. Shops in city centers in France will be required to switch off their lights from 1am to 6am.

But in Paris, luxury shop owners however are less than happy and say they need to keep their lights on.

“Switching our lights off at 1am reduces the visibility of our brands and creates security problems,” complains Jean-Claude Cathalan, a representative of shop owners on the swanky Avenue Montaigne in Paris, Le Parisien reports.

Shop owners and the French Ministry of Sustainable Development are reportedly in talks to find solutions, such as fluctuating lights or lights that detect people passing by.

PARIS

Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Efforts to relocate wild rabbits that are a common sight on the lawns of the historic Invalides memorial complex have provoked criticism from animal rights groups.

Published: 14 February 2024 13:01 CET
Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Tourists and Parisians have long been accustomed to the sight of wild rabbits frolicking around the lawns of Les Invalides, one of the French capital’s great landmarks.

But efforts are underway to relocate the fluffy animals, accused of damaging the gardens and drains around the giant edifice that houses Napoleon’s tomb, authorities said.

Police said that several dozen bunnies had been captured since late January and relocated to the private estate of Breau in the Seine-et-Marne region outside Paris, a move that has prompted an outcry from animal rights activists.

“Two operations have taken place since 25 January,” the police prefecture told AFP.

“Twenty-four healthy rabbits were captured on each occasion and released after vaccination” in Seine-et-Marne, the prefecture said.

Six more operations are scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.

Around 300 wild rabbits live around Les Invalides, according to estimates.

“The overpopulation on the site is leading to deteriorating living conditions and health risks,” the prefecture said.

Authorities estimate the cost of restoring the site, which has been damaged by the proliferation of underground galleries and the deterioration of gardens, pipes and flora, at €366,000.

Animal rights groups denounced the operation.

The Paris Animaux Zoopolis group said the rabbits were being subjected to “intense stress” or could be killed “under the guise of relocation”.

“A number of rabbits will die during capture and potentially during transport,” said the group, accusing authorities of being “opaque” about their methods.

The animal rights group also noted that Breau was home to the headquarters of the Seine-et-Marne hunting federation.

The police prefecture insisted that the animals would not be hunted.

In 2021, authorities classified the rabbits living in Paris as a nuisance but the order was reversed following an outcry from animal groups who have been pushing for a peaceful cohabitation with the animals.

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