Patmobile

Whether you get a chance to send in a postal vote depends on the constituency you last lived in in UK My mother used to live in the Fareham constituency before joining us here in France 4 years ago. She gets her postal vote in good time and has voted in the last General Election and in the AV referendum. We were last registered as living in Tower Hamlets where there is a huge amount of Postal Voting by "ghost" voters who live, oddly enough, by the hundreds in houses belonging to local political figures and their friends and families, but who are never actually seen coming and going. These "ghost" postal voters always get their voting papers in good time. Too bad, however, if you live abroad like us. We either get our papers way too late (like posted to us the day before the election) or not at all. Last I heard, this transparent vote-rigging in the constituency was going to be investigated. I did e-mail the Prime Minister after the last General Election to complain about my, probably deliberate, disenfranchisement. I still haven't had any AV referendum voting papers, though.

REUTERS "Viviane Reding, the EU's fundamental rights commissioner, dropped her previous accusation that the “disgraceful” policy amounted to illegal discrimination against gipsies. Instead, she warned France that it was in technical breach of EU law by failing to properly incorporate a 2004 free movement directive into national law, a substantial softening of her previous position. “The Commission accepted France’s assurances that the measures taken have neither the aim nor the effect of targeting a specific 'minority’ and that French authorities apply EU law in a non-discriminatory fashion,” said a two-page statement. The case has strained relations between Paris and Brussels after an angry confrontation between Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, and senior Commission officials at an EU summit on Sep 16. Mrs Reding was forced to withdraw her comparison of the Roma policy with Vichy France’s Second World War collaboration with Nazi round-ups of ethnic minorities after President Nicolas Sarkozy demanded an apology for a “disgusting and shameful attack on the honour of France”. Eric Besson, the French immigration minister, proclaimed victory for France." Brussels lawyers, at great expense, no doubt, have advised that though France is in technical breach of EU law, there is no Human Rights case to answer.  I could have saved them the time and (most of) the expense Patrick PS:  NormanH, I read, write and speak French, English and German and have at least "a modicum" of legal training, but it wouldn't take a multilingual international lawyer to find the flaws in the EU's "case".  I never said what Sarkozy did was nice, just that he, and France, broke no laws and infringed no-one's human rights.  Their human dignity, maybe...

Brussels has withdrawn the threat of legal action in the European Court.  It's clear they have realised they have no winnable case.  As predicted by.... Patrick

I'll believe he wants to distance himself from his predecessors when he denounces the "dodgy dossier" cooked up by Blair and his cronies and calls for a proper judicial enquiry. What's the betting all the paperwork has been "mislaid" just like Blair's expenses records. Patrick

[quote user="Quillan"]I don't think its right to target a specific group like this. I agree with what the EU has said and to which Ade100 refers in that as a citizen/passport holder of an EU member state you can freely move around the European Union but you can't be a drain on the resources of the country in which you have chosen to reside. The only problem of throwing out all those that are a drain is that it would undoubtedly upset many other EU states when their citizens are returned. I mean, if you implement a law based on this EU directive then it has to be applied equally and fairly to all. I also don't understand why, like many Brits who paid very little in to the French State system, they can't be given some form of grace in the same way like if you have filled in a tax return for the last 5 years but the amount is zero or whatever you can stay. [/quote] If this ever went to court, which it won't, because of the acute flimsiness of the Brussels case, the French government would say, quite justifiably, they are not "targetting" Roma but "prioritising" their removal from shanty encampments.  If multiple large gangs of illegal Brits were setting up unsightly,illegal, unlicensed, unhealthy camps on both public and private property and using them as bases for various unwelcome forms of illegal activity, they could expect to be "targetted" in the same way.    

I knew an old bike from Bagnoles, once long ago. Patrick

I'm not arguing any moral point here.  I'm simply suggesting Brussels should butt out and shut up.  There is no point them wasting European taxpayers' money trying to take such a weak case to court. The Brussels bureaucrats simply can't say that other EU citizens wouldn't be treated in the same way - no other vagrant ethnic group from another EU country has taken advantage of EU rules to come to France and set up shanty encampments.  But, if large parties of Celts, say from Cornwall and Wales, or Gaels from Ireland and Scotland came into France and squatted illegally on public and private land, are they saying they would not be seen as lawbreakers by the French government, and be treated in some other more favourable way?  Are they suggesting the French government would not make it a priority to clean up the camp sites and send the vagrants back?   Are they suggesting the name of the ethnic group the squatters, themselves, proudly claim should not be used when discussing them? If Brussels could give examples of different official French treatment for different races in the same circumstances they might stand a chance of winning a court case, otherwise they should stop wasting everyone's money and time by threatening pointless legal action.  Patrick  

[quote user="Albert the InfoGipsy"][quote user="Patmobile"]There might also be an argument as to whether "Roma" is in fact a distinct race or just a name for people of no particular race or nationality who live a nomadic way of life.  [/quote] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romani_people Particularly have a look at 'Origins'. As you suggested, I'm considering changing my forum name.  [/quote] Hi Albert, I'm not saying there is no Roma, Romany, Rom, or whatever race, just that even to start to prove an act of racism you would potentially have to overcome first any defence argument that various groups of Romanian and Bulgarian travellers camping illegally could not be considered to be of one identifiable racial type.   Patrick

[quote user="pachapapa"] But following your line of thought that, a priori, gets SNCF off the hook during the Vichy France Era; they were just transporting a mixed group of undesirables of multiple creeds and ethnicities. But I fancy with a proper court and VERY competent lawyers in california it wont be a done deal; interesting to see how it turns out though as there are similar TGV projects for Texas,the Chicago area, Florida, NewYork, etc. [/quote] The crux of this very different case is that these people, Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals etc., mostly of French nationality, were being rounded up in their own country, having committed no crime other than belonging to a particular racial, religious or genetic group, and knowingly transported by SNCF to slavery or death camps. It's a completely different case in almost every way. Sarkozy's government has not infringed the Human Rights of the Roma shanty dwellers.  They have not complied with the law and are expelled (though with financial comfort) to their country of origin where they are not enslaved, tortured or shot, and they are not prevented from returning whenever they like.  Moreover, they will be permitted to stay, the next time, provided they are in full compliance with France's legitimate requirement that they have jobs or are capable of supporting themselves, and are not breaking the law by creating unlicensed encampments. Patrick

It might be considered a racist policy if there were no other criteria for action other than being "Roma".  However, as I read it the government called for action to clear illegal encampments of all types - adding, perhaps unwisely, Roma encampments as a priority. I reckon in a proper court any reasonably competent lawyer could argue sucessfully that the government meant no racial bias, merely setting an order in which action was to be taken against any and all offenders, excepting none. There might also be an argument as to whether "Roma" is in fact a distinct race or just a name for people of no particular race or nationality who live a nomadic way of life.  If it goes to court France should win this case. Patrick  

I'm following the posts on the Loire forum but can't be sure I can get involved with the building - or even the trip, as September tends to be a busy time for me. I'm looking for a suitable lightweight design By the way, to keep up with the latest terminology, shouldn't you be known as Albert the InfoRoma or even InfoRom?  Look out or they'll expel you! Patrick  

Viking funeral please - in the old boat leaning up against the stable wall, that I will never get round to restoring. That should break every French law in the book Patrick

Hi Albert I could be interested so I've joined the group and looked in on the forum, but canoes aren't really my thing.  I'm thinking about building a lightweight rowing boat for it. Patrick

I don't know what is required for power driven craft, but if your boat is less than 5 metres long, moves exclusively under human power (i.e. oars, paddles, punt pole, etc) and you only want to use it on lakes, canals and rivers, it does not have to be registered.  Same applies if you want to use it in the sea not more than 300 metres from shore. Also boats less than 2.5 metres in length with motor propulsion of less than 3kw (4cv) are exempt from registration for use on the waters defined above. Every other craft outside of these exclusions has to be registered and a "Carte de Circulation" obtained (to be carried on board at all times).  I presume this applies to any power boat of over 2.5m, since obviously it would not be exempted under the above rules. I believe there is a horsepower limit, above which the owner/driver needs to have a personal certificate of competence, too. As Albert points out, not all rivers and lakes allow powered craft at all, and limits apply on some other stretches of water. Patrick  

[quote user="Mattyj198"] So next year I plan to spend the summer doing renovations on our new house in France. It has 2 houses, one will be the main house accessible by gates from the street and the other the guest house where we will rent out rooms. That house has a door right out on to the street. [/quote] Call me cynical but it sounds perfect for guests who want to run off without paying.   I would block up the door to the street and if necessary put in another door somewhere to make them enter and exit through the gates.  That, or make them pay in advance. Patrick