Monday

Hunting – Secretary of State for Biodiversity Bérangère Couillard will announce the government’s plans to make hunting safer. Early reports suggest that a ban on Sunday hunting is unlikely.

Rail travel –  SNCF relaunches its ‘carte familles nombreuses’, offering discounts on rail travel for families with three or more children aged under 18, in a digital format. The scheme has been operating since 1921, but was temporarily halted in December to allow for the creation of a new online application portal. You will be able to order your new cards here from January 9th.

Courts – One of France’s biggest recent health scandals will be back in the news as  – two years after being sentenced to a fine of €2.718 million for “aggravated deception” in the scandal linked to a weight loss drug, Servier laboratories appeal against the conviction.

Parliament – French legislators will come back to the office today after their Christmas break.

Tuesday

Pension reform – Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne will unveil details of the planned pension reform – originally planned for December 15th. The plans are highly controversial and unions have already called for strikes and demonstrations. 

READ ALSO 5 minutes to understand . . . French pension reform

Hospital strike – the union FO has called for an ‘unlimited strike’ for hospital workers to protest at under-funding of the health service. Key workers in the health sector are barred from striking, so industrial action normally takes the form of demonstrations outside hospitals.

Wednesday

Bargain hunt – The strictly regulated winter sales kick off in stores across most of the country on Wednesday, and run for almost four weeks.

READ ALSO Everything you need to know about France’s 2023 winter sales

Hospital strike – the union FO has called for an ‘unlimited strike’ for hospital workers to protest at under-funding of the health service. Key workers in the health sector are barred from striking, so industrial action normally takes the form of demonstrations outside hospitals.

Thursday

World ice swimming championships – the world championships in the sport of ice swimming begin in the French Alpine resort of Samoëns, 500 swimmers from 42 countries are expected to take part. The contest lasts until Sunday. 

Friday

Could it be you? – Friday the 13th could be lucky for someone in France, with a minimum guaranteed Super Loto prize of €13 million up for grabs.

African Nations Championship – if you’re in a part of France that has a large Algerian or Moroccan population, expect some noisy bars over the next few days as the African Nations Championship gets underway. Host nation Algeria take on Libya on Friday at 8pm and Morocco play Sudan on Sunday at 5pm.