Araucaria

Making sure that we treat people we like in accordance with their human rights is normally pretty easy. It's how we treat the people we dislike (the scumbags, to coin a phrase) that shows how civilised we are.

One suggestion I saw was that Ms May asked her lawyer "what's the time limit for our appeal?", and the lawyer, who knew that it was either the 16th or the 17th (depending on one's ability to understand a long dead language), told her the 16th, so that if she decided to appeal, she couldn't possibly be out of time. It didn't seem very likely that Qatada himself would want to appeal, as he'd won at the European Court back in January. May then assumed that if the time limit for her appeal was the 16th, it would be the same for him - perhaps she didn't listen too carefully when the lawyer mumbled something about there being some doubt about the exact date. [EDIT] I see that is in the link Pacapapa posted - sorry! Indeed, both dates might have been right. If the language were genuinely ambiguous, the court would be required to favour the person claiming his human rights were at issue: so the limit for May's appeal (if she had made one) might have been the 16th, and for Qatada it would have been the 17th.

[quote user="parsnips"][quote user="Pommier"]Hi Parsnips, You say that the tontine clause is merely delaying the children's inheritance, but surely it is doing more than that in that it is denying the inheritance since the surviving partner can presumably sell the house and then do as they wish with the money. Have I misunderstood? [/quote] Hi,   What you say is correct, but , if the children are the natural offspring of the surviving spouse, they will inherit that spouse's estate (or what is left of it) eventually.  This would be the same if the house was left to the survivor under a "legs residuel", or an estate consisting of liquid assets left under a "Quasi-Usufruit" where the survivor can spend the money.  You have assumed that there is never a way round the forced heirship rule, but , as with any complex system, like the french law, there are always (quite legal) loopholes.     As I have said any step-children have a (theoretical) means of challenging the tontine. [/quote] But of course before either spouse dies, both of them together can just as easily spend it and "deny the inheritance" to their children. I don't see why it's bad if the widow/er does it but not so bad if they do it together. And it's called Ski-ing ....

[quote user="Russethouse"] I can't see him on the list under either name, and the Guardian looks like the only paper (out of the ones I looked at quickly) to mention the Compagnon de La Liberation. Never the less both Sarkozy and Hollande have paid tribute to him, so he obviously respected for his past exploits whatever his politics (and after all isn't that what the fight was for, so people had the freedom to follow their political hearts and not be dictated to ?)[/quote] His supposed membership of the Ordre de la Libération is also mentioned in the online editions of (the newspaper) Libération: http://www.liberation.fr/societe/2012/04/11/raymond-aubrac-est-mort_810888 and in L'Express: http://www.lexpress.fr/diaporama/diapo-photo/actualite/societe/raymond-aubrac-une-vie-de-resistance_1103327.html?p=7 but both articles use exactly the same words, so one is probably borrowing from the other. Aubrac seems to have been on very friendly terms with de Gaulle, so if he was in fact not a member of the Order it is something of a surprise.

Quite a few countries have special tax rules for what they call "artistes and entertainers". These rules were mostly put in place back in the days when some big but obviously foreign rock star would turn up on tour, perform a few gigs for megabucks, and then leave without having any tax liability in the country where the performance took place. I don't think these rules are much of a guide to what France would actually do if you continued your normal UK occupation for a few days when you were on holiday in France (and if the French authorities actually noticed). If it was a separate business which you only conducted when here in France, the answer might be different. The OP might want to have a look at Article 5 of the UK-France Double Taxation Agreement, which is meant to describe what would and would not be regarded as a "permanent establishment" - effectively a French taxable branch of a UK business. It covers a number of the circumstances described by previous posters (eg buying wine in France for a UK business). It's worth saying that you can easily have a tax liability for business activities in France without there being any possibility that you are resident in France. The French tax liability attaches both to people who are resident in France, and also (separately) to business activities carried on in France by non-residents.

Cassie you might not actually need a geometre, if what you are buying is one or more complete parcels on the cadastral plan. If my experience is anything to go by, the geometre doesn't even get out of bed for less than €1,000, and that was for a tiny patch and just a couple of bornes. Of course, you might subsequently want to have the bit you have bought formally marked out by the geometre, but I think the geometre's cost will be much the same whether you have it done at the time of the purchase or later. Good luck!

I'm afraid this is nothing new. Try Googling the two phrases "trading in the UK" "trading with the UK" together, and look at some of the 2.7 million hits you'll get - the issue dates back to the very early years of UK income tax. In fact at one time it was suggested that a chapter in Magna Carta had a bearing on the issue. OK, for those of an inquiring mind, it was this one: Omnes mercatores habeant salvum et securum exire de Anglia, et venire in Angliam, et morari et ire per Angliam, tam per terram quam per aquam, ad emendum et vendendum, sine omnibus malis toltis, per antiquas et rectas consuetudines, preterquam in tempore gwerre, et si sint de terra contra nos gwerrina; et si tales inveniantur in terra nostra in principio gwerre, attachientur sine dampno corporum et rerum, donec sciatur a nobis vel capitali justiciario nostro quomodo mercatores terre nostre tractentur, qui tunc invenientur in terra contra nos gwerrina; et si nostri salvi sint ibi, alii salvi sint in terra nostra. Or in English: All merchants shall have safe and secure exit from England, and entry to England, with the right to tarry there and to move about as well by land as by water, for buying and selling by the ancient and right customs, quit from all evil tolls, except (in time of war) such merchants as are of the land at war with us. And if such are found in our land at the beginning of the war, they shall be detained, without injury to their bodies or goods, until information be received by us, or by our chief justiciar, how the merchants of our land found in the land at war with us are treated; and if our men are safe there, the others shall be safe in our land. Not the second bit, obviously, though even that seems more liberal than the UK's more recent ways of dealing with foreigners in time of war. More recently, here's what HMRC has to say about people who are "trading with the UK", without trading "in" the UK ...... and try following the additional links on the page too. But I don't think it is easily susceptible to any "simple fix".

[quote user="pachapapa"]I read that Cameron successfully completed his solo submersible dive to the depths of the Mariana trench in the Pacific yesterday. [/quote] For a moment I thought you meant Dave and hoped he'd stay there.

[quote user="Chiefluvvie"]minnie - just give the CPAM both copies of the S1 - it's only ever issued in English by the UK. They will not need a translation - it's a standard EU form. Take a copy for yourself - just in case.... Chiefluvvie[/quote] I hope that's the way it works with the S1. But when I went to try to get a French driving licence, they said they wanted an official translation of my English one (and I mean the little plastic photo-card, not the big paper attachment). This is also a standard EU form, with the EU logo on it.

Took me a while to get to the forum - had to click through the rest of the website. But maybe that's the idea? Also my saved login and password had gone AWOL. And the initial (old) URL location was an error message which after about 20 seconds automatically redirected to the new Complete France site. Teething problems I'd say.

[quote user="Clair"][quote user="Araucaria"]We were sitting in the sun outside a café in Maurs yesterday...[/quote] Lovely Maurs! I don't go there often, but I love this little town. It has a very provincial charm. [/quote] I agree. They have this lovely sign "Maurs - Nice du Cantal", so I was expecting the cyclists to stop there. Is there a sign just outside Nice saying "Maurs du Midi" do you suppose?

[quote user="Quillan"]Just as a matter of interest how long does €500 worth of chips last?[/quote] Last year we only used the one delivery (the silo was filled in January 2011 and January 2012) - but I suspect with the very cold weather last month we will be refilling in November or maybe earlier. Our silo only holds a fraction more than 15 cu metres so we wait until it is almost completely empty before getting another delivery. It's quite a big house: three floors each about 95 sq metres.

A very nice picture. We had a couple of hundred go over last night (I thought they were geese, but they looked just like your picture). They were also heading north. I have never seen anything quite like it before. Truly impressive.

[quote user="powerdesal"]Whilst wood chip fired heating costs are generally lower than wood pellet costs ( 2.9 pence / kwh vs 4.2 pence / kwh - source biomassenergycentre UK ) the fact is that there are very few wood chip boilers available in 'domestic' sizes. The smallest I could find was 25 kw with most manufacturers quoting 30 kw and upwards. The cost of wood chip boilers is also considerably greater than wood pellet boilers, generally about double the price as far as my quick search went. [/quote] I think there are now smaller wood chip boilers; for example, a quick search shows that KWB do a 15kw one. I don't have much doubt that it will be more expensive than a pellet one - it's made in Austria and I couldn't find a price list. No surprise there. Your price comparison at Biomass Energy Centre in the UK notes that prices for chips are highly variable (they mention differences of "a factor of two or more": the figure they give is an average). I suspect that the UK may have higher wood-chip prices than France: my own impression is that there is a bit more commercial forestry in France than the UK. I can't quite make the comparison with the UK figures as we buy by volume not weight. We are currently paying just under €500 for 15 cubic meters of chips, but I have no idea what this weighs. It comes from a farmer a couple of fields away, though he has to hire the special lorry to deliver it - it's blown out of a pipe attached to the lorry and straight into our silo. I guess it's worth saying that (as shown on that comparison you quote) electricity is five times as expensive as wood chips ......

[quote user="Clair"]The riders are just about to pass nearby. They're having their lunch break in a village (... ahem, sorry, a very small town) not too far from us... Edit @13:55: Off they go! [:)] [/quote] We were sitting in the sun outside a café in Maurs yesterday at 2.15 pm or so sipping coffee and watching them go by ... wonderful ... then yesterday evening a huge gaggle of migrating geese went overhead, heading north. Yes, spring is coming and I know why I like it here.

[quote user="flamesnm"]Thanks again everyone for taking the time to reply. I would be tempted with the GSHP if it was capable of HW and heating, but as it is I think I'm going to rule it out. I like the idea of a wood pellet/log boiler to a heat store with solar as a top up. I'll need to read up on the heat store options. I think also a split air source heat pump which will provide additional heat and cooling to the lounge and main bedroom will also provide some flexibility. I'll need to check the new internal units though to see whether I can live with them. I'll also need to ensure there are multiple pellet suppliers down in 64. The bottled gas prices and usage were very interesting, and much lower than I expected. A dual fuel range cooker would fit the bill, and I can revisit PV tubes at some point in the future if they become viable. So, I have a basic plan. It may go out the window in the first discussion with the prospective builders ( all lined up for the week of 19th March ) but it's a starting point. [/quote] If you are attracted by a pellet boiler, do take the time to look at the wood-chip alternative. Wood chips can be locally sourced, don't require much energy to produce, are basically a waste product of forestry, and are reasonably cheap. The boiler technology is similar to pellets, but normally a pellet boiler won't take chips while a chip boiler will take pellets. All the other plus factors are very similar (the boiler is fully automatic, fed by an archimedes screw from a silo), but the fuel cost is lower and perhaps it's all a bit greener. The initial cost is higher, but if you shop around you may find something you can afford. The heat store with solar top up is a good idea too: you probably won't need to run the boiler at all in the summer months if you size the solar collectors properly.

[quote user="PaulT"]It does seem that certain spheres of activity get higher rewards than others. Take the Attenboroughs: One is an actor and director who entertains so make him a Lord The other is a naturalist who educates and inspires so make him a Sir   [/quote] I recall ages ago reading a story - surely apocryphal - that the wrong brother got the original knighthood in 1976. David was put up for the honour for all the worthy things he had been doing, and the recommendation went to the honours committee as just "D Attenborough". Regrettably (or perhaps not) the cabinet secretary at the time was a film buff who wasn't aware that David even existed, and he remarked to his assistant secretary "What a silly billy you are: Dicky Attenborough's name really starts with an R". So he crossed out the D and put it up for final approval with Richard's name on it. It then took a long time for David to get any official recognition at all (he was finally knighted in 1985).

Can anyone tell me whether a car previously registered with the old-style plate always needs a new-style re-registration whenever it changes hands? I wondered whether a car bought by someone in the same department as the previous owner (under the old system the car would have kept its original plate) now gets a new one. Thanks in advance.

I recall hearing this described as "natural insemination by a donor".......

[quote user="pachapapa"]Aurillac is always a coool place to be. http://www.meteorama.fr/météo-aurillac.html [/quote] Aurillac is just up the road from here. Or it would be, if I could find the road. [IMG]http://i585.photobucket.com/albums/ss293/Vanman15/snow1.jpg[/IMG]

Mary: two suggestions. Get to know Project Gutenberg: it hosts loads of free out-of-copyright books. Some of these are books that Amazon will sell you without telling you that you could have them for free instead. If you put a lot of books onto your Kindle, consider downloading Calibre to your PC. It's a free e-book management utility, and it will help you keep track of what you've got (there's an excellent "Collections" tool available there), and it will provide a backup copy of books you haven't bought from Amazon. Another advantage of using it is that it will handle conversion of books in other formats into a Kindle (.mobi) format. Enjoy your reading!

Can someone remind me how to go about getting a UK EHIC? I'm permanently resident in France and piggy-backing my French health cover on my wife's, as Mrs A is past UK retirement age. Thanks in advance.

This helps explain something that always mystified me. Some years back I had a RHD DS 21 for a while (I think in the end I spent more time getting it past its MOT than driving it, as most of the connections in the wiring harness had dried out and various lights would stop working randomly between preparing it and arriving at the MOT test station). The parking brake was applied with a small foot pedal just to the right of the accelerator. It was let off with a separate hand release below the dash (I think - does anyone else remember?): but the release was all or nothing. This made conventional UK-style hill starts almost impossible, as you couldn't release the parking brake gradually. But for the French style of driving (slipping the clutch on hill starts) it makes a lot more sense.

You will probably have a small amount of tourist tax to pay, too: taxe de séjour, based on the number of people who stayed, how old they were (children are likely to be exempt), and perhaps on how smart your holiday let is. It's usually just pence per person per day, but it will add up to a few tens (or hundreds?) of euros. You could try asking the tourist office about that one. As most of it goes direct to the commune, you're probably well advised to pay it. The mayor may be looking out for every extra cent this year.

I see that an abebooks seller has just Volume II of the 1788 version for sale. Maybe it's sufficiently similar to your 1755 edition to make it worth your while investing the £125 required and you'd then have a complete set to sell. Mind you, I think religious works like this don't make very high prices unless they are in good condition and in very nice bindings.